Sleeping on Buses with Boys
by fire-emblem-girl
Summary: It was a 2 hour bus ride to his school-Roxas should've known better than to fall asleep. Multi-chapter fic, AkuRoku AU. one sided NamiRox and RiSora. Some SoKai.
1. Chapter 1

Sleeping on Buses with Boys.

"No, no, I'll be there soon," Roxas murmured into his cell phone as he stepped onto the bus. He deposited his fare then moved to the back of the bus, "okay, I'm on the bus now. Bye."

The blonde took a seat beside a window and swapped his phone for his mp3 player. After a few seconds some upbeat pop tune flowed through the headphones-he grimaced. _Sora must've gotten into my computer again and put all this crap on._ But he kept it playing anyway only because he couldn't be bothered to change it. After one last glance at his watch Roxas let his eyes shut. _Two more hours until I get there._

People soon began crushing him into the window though he barely acknowledged it other than shifting slightly. With all the breathing going on the bus had gotten quite hot which only lulled him into sleep. _Guess I should've…had some coffee…_

Someone shaking him by the shoulder forced him out of a shallow slumber. Roxas sat up with a start, rubbing his eyes furiously to clear his vision. _What's going on?_ A pair of bright green eyes glittered with something that could be amusement.

"Wake up sleepy head or you'll miss your stop."

The teen felt his face flush-and not from the heat either. Besides the eyes the person's vivid crimson hair stuck out against the crowd's brown hues.

"W-What?" Roxas shook his head and cleared his throat, "I mean, how do you know my stop?"

A jarring bark of laughter woke him up further, "Destiny Island's uniform is pretty easy to recognize."

"Oh. Crap!" he abruptly broke away from the conversation to scream for the driver to open the back door. Despite the almost disaster he managed to make it to the front entrance of the school without incident. Until he realized something-his cell phone was gone.

"Roxas? You look like someone fed you lemons," Olette leaned forward, her head cocked to one side.

"I lost my cell phone."

"That's all? Jeez, thought someone died!" Hayner commented with a grin that took up half his face.

"Yeah Roxas, you look pretty horrible," Pence agreed, laughing.

Out of all of them Hayner was the cockiest, Olette the kindest and Pence the most creative. Roxas ranked himself as somewhere in between all of them. At the moment they all wore their school uniforms but he knew before they headed out to hang at the mall they would make a dash to the change rooms.

"Yeah, well, all my numbers are on there…I don't want some creeper getting them," he muttered with a frown.

His friends laughed at him them began making their way inside the school. They merged with student traffic and followed the river of classmates to homeroom. Destiny Island High boasted, quite loudly in fact, the largest campus in the area and a prominent football team. Today just happened to be a game day. _Why'd mom even make me go when I only have 3 hours of classes? _

The group plopped down in the front row even though Hayner protested loudly.

"Oh Hayner just admit you need glasses already!" Olette swept her skirt underneath her before sitting down.

"I don't need them!" he snapped as their girl removed her own glasses from their case.

"It's not like they're the end of the world Hayner," Roxas said softly.

"Yeah, they might even make you look smarter!" Pence nudged Roxas in the ribs but the blonde refused to bite. _No way am I laughing and getting beat up. _The brown haired girl poorly concealed her giggles behind her hand.

"Some friends you guys are," the taller fair boy crossed his arms over his chest and proceeded to ignore them.

_I wonder if someone stole it while I was sleeping…that guy! I bet he took it! _Roxas narrowed his eyes at the chalkboard as if it could blamed for all his troubles.

"Hey, all of you quiet down," their teacher set down his bag on the wooden desk with a loud clunk. His light brown hair had been perfectly set in a style that drew attention away from the long scar running down his face. The classroom fell silent almost immediately.

"I hope you all completed your assignments-don't think because it's a half day you can get away with not doing any work."

A couple people groaned loudly but Mr. Leonheart ignored them in favour of beginning to write out an equation on the chalkboard, "So, tell me. How would you find the parabola of this line?"

_Why did I even take this class? _Roxas sighed-today was going to be one heck of a ride.

His next class-biology-had him dissecting a foetal pig with a squeamish girl who turned an alarming shade of green every time he made a cut. _God, it's not that gross._ The teen sliced a bit too forcefully and sent the pan rocketing across the table and to the floor where it scraped along the tiles so loudly everyone dropped their work to cover their ears. He let his bangs fall into his face.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Oh, poor little piggy, let's get him back on your table," Ms. Gainsborough smiled and handed him his pig, "careful Roxas."

"Yes ma'am."

"Oh no, I'm going to be-"his partner bolted from the classroom which was when he noticed the slice on his hand. _Ow. _Blood dripped from the wound and splattered on the white floor. _Great. Just great. _

"Can I go to the nurse?" Roxas held out his hand, ignoring the gasps from the other kids.

The pink clad woman's eyes widened but she didn't appear worried," everyone get back to work…NOW!"

She quickly grabbed a stack of paper towels and pressed them to his hand while pulling him along the hall.

"How did this happen? Are you alright Roxas? Don't worry, you'll be fine."

He shrugged, "I was just careless I guess…I've been tired lately so I probably…"

With a single nod the woman swept them into the nurse's office, "oh Dr. Kadowaki!"

An older lady stuck her head out from behind a curtain surrounding a bed, "oh, Aerith. You have business for me?

"He cut his hand open with a scalpel. We were dissecting pigs."

_Who's she? I've never seen her around school. _"It'll be a clean cut anyway. Just like when Squall-I mean Leon- sliced his face open hm?"

"That was ages ago and you still remember it?!"

Dr. Kadowaki shrugged, "with him bleeding all over the place it's hard to forget. Anyway let's get to the present. Remove the paper towels please."

The paper clung stubbornly to his flesh for a second then slowly peeled itself off like shedded skin. His stomach lurched. _Gross._ He stared out the window while the nurse worked-_maybe I should call the bus company. At least I would if __**someone **__hadn't stolen it! I didn't even get the guy's name!_

"Here you go. You have to fill out an accident report."

He stared at the paper with a frown but lifted his hand to start filling it out. Until realized it had been his dominant hand that had been injured. _Oh for god sakes…_he slapped his forehead.

"Let me guess, you cut your good hand."

"Yeah."

"Great."

"Yeah."

After a good hour in the infirmary Roxas finally finished the paperwork just in time to meet his friends in front of the 2nd floor bathrooms. He went to his own locker to dig out his change of clothes. Hayner slung his arm around the shorter blonde's shoulders.

"Hey Roxas, what's with the hand?"

He shrugged off the embrace so they could walk, "cut myself in science."

"I always knew you were emo!"

"Yeah whatever four eyes," Roxas joked.

"Aw shut up!" the other guy punched him in the arm as they entered the bathroom.

"Hey, can I borrow your phone for a sec?"

Hayner held out his huge cell-his parents had refused to buy him a new one since his brand new one had gotten broken during a fight with Seifer. While Hayner changed Roxas stood watch over their backpacks and phoned the bus line.

"I was wondering if you found a cell phone on the 18 bus line today."

After a short wait they told him that someone had turned one in and to come down to the terminal to claim it. He groaned but at least he knew where his phone was. The two blondes switched roles then went out to meet their other friends.

"Hey Roxas, do you mind holding my purse for me while I looked at this stuff?"

He nodded and held out his hand-she had her hands full after all. Hayner snorted and muttered something like 'whipped' but kept quiet when Olette turned to look at him. Pence just laughed. _Yeah, go ahead and make fun of me while you both stand there. Then complain when Olette says she likes me better than you guys. _

"Hey, you!" a voice yelled from across the store.

A second later he got tackled to the ground. The air whooshed from his lungs. Somewhere in the distance he heard his friends calling to him but he just lay there even after the weight shifted off his torso.

"You useless idiot! That's not him!"

"Oh. Oops. Sorry dude," the security guard helped him sit up and brushed some invisible dust from the teen's shoulder.

"Wha-what's your problem?!"

The man scratched at his streaked steel coloured hair, "sorry. Thought you were a criminal man."

Immediately after the man cleared out Hayner, Pence and Olette crowded around him.

"You got a battle scar there Roxas," the fair haired teen commented.

"What?"

The only girl amongst them held up a mirror she'd plucked from the shelves. _I have rug burn. On my __**face**__._ Today just wasn't his day.

His mom ha bandaged his face when he'd gotten home but still kind of stung. A lot. Roxas jumped in the bath though he had to hold his hands out to the side. Maybe if he got lucky tomorrow would be better.

"Roxas, your aunt is on the phone!"

Or maybe not.

"I'm in the bath!"

"Get out then!"

The teen glared at a spot on the wall before wrapping a towel around himself .He took the phone barely managing to bite back a sigh.

"Hello?"

"Oh, Roxas how nice to talk to you again! I was just talking to your uncle about you-I was so!-what a loud…Anyway; I just wanted to let you know about my nieces. Not blood related of course! They'll be transferring to your school this week!"

He frowned, "oh."

"Kairi and Namine. I took special care to make sure they were in your homeroom class!"

_Great. In a totally __**not**__ great way. _"Uh huh."

"Put your mom back on the phone, we have adult things to discuss!"

Without hesitation Roxas pressed the thing into his mom's hands then returned to his bath. He sunk into the water-like he really wanted new girls moving in on his friends, eating lunch with him and wanting to talk to him. Tomorrow he would go pick up his cell phone thus returning his life to its normal and not at all unlucky state. _Yeah, that's exactly how it'll happen._

Roxas dragged his feet along the floor to the bathroom. He went to the toilet, brushed his teeth then gelled him hair. The sandy locked boy pulled on his uniform and trudged downstairs. He pushed away the bowl of porridge his mom offered in favour of a glass of orange juice which would ideally wake him up but in the end only burned his tongue. His mouth opened wide in a yawn as he slipped through the front door.

Outside the weather made a mockery of the rainy conditions of yesterday. He could see the sun poking out from the horizon and made his way to the bus terminal. A blonde man with a goatee sat behind the counter of the lost and found.

"How can I help you Roxas?"

"WH-what?"

"I said how can I help you?"

He shook his head-_must've imagined it_, "uh, I lost a cell phone yesterday on the bus."

"Huh. 12 to one odds that it's here. Care to wager on it?"

Roxas stared, "…no. Give me my phone. I called last night."

The man sighed, "Boring. But alright. Here you go, Black Nokia."

He could've cried. _I never expected to get it back. At least no one will get my phone numbers. _He shoved the phone back in his pocket and moved to the adjoined station to catch his bus.

This early only a couple of other people sat on the benches waiting for the public transportation in the form of a long haired brunette wearing a cowboy hat, a woman with big breasts and long black hair. When they boarded Roxas again went to the back to sleep. In order to remedy the problem of his face hitting against the window pane he tried putting his backpack where his head landed. Except then he just got knapsack burn so he finally resorted to leaning back against the back wall of the bus.

He jumped awake later when he dreamt about cell phones being stolen from his pocket.

"Good morning Roxas."

The blonde's eyes widened at the other guy, "you!"

"Yeah, me."

"How do you know my name?! You stole my cell phone!" he snapped making everyone turn to gawk at him.

"Now now. I didn't steal it. _You _dropped it after you ran for the door yesterday."

"L-Liar!"

The red head rolled his eyes, "whatever you say Roxas."

"Fine."

"I think I liked you better when you were sleeping."

Roxas crossed his arms and turned his head to look out the window. Buildings had become sparse now but they would reappear again soon, before they drove onto the ferry. To his visible surprise the annoying cell phone thief got off the bus at the next stop without even acknowledging the blonde's presence. _Fine. Bye you phone stealer._

He didn't notice the new entry into his phone until home room. Demyx. _Who's that? Did that weirdo put his number into my phone?! _Before he could call it though Mr. Leonheart stepped into the room with two girls in tow.

Both stood at the same height but one had red hair and the other blonde. Their faces looked somehow similar, almost like they could be twins, but at the same time had features unique to each of them. _So they're not twins. But look really similar. Kind of like me and Sora._

"Alright. Today we have two new students-Kairi and Namine from Hollow Bastion. Make them feel welcome. Please take a seat you two; we'll get to introductions at the end of class."

The pair moved to the only free seats at the back of the room-beside Seifer and his so called disciplinary squad. Olette watched them both with a faint smile. _She must want some girl friends._ Hayner followed them with his eyes too but for an entirely different reason. _What a horn dog._

"Did you see those new girls? You can tell they're from HB huh?" Hayner said at lunch, pieces of his sandwich flying from his mouth.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Olette raised her eyebrows then dissolved into laughter.

The blonde stuck out his bottom lip, "nothing. They're just pretty okay?!"

"He's right, they are pretty. But not as much as…never mind," Pence's face went red and he smiled sheepishly.

"Pence likes Oleeeette!" the tallest boy started a chant. _Sure, take the heat off of you_ Roxas shook his head.

"Sh-shut up Hayner!"

Their increasingly loud shouting was interrupted by the appearance of the new girls. One had already gained a hanger on in a brown haired girl Roxas remembered was named Selphie.

"Hi, Roxas?" they approached the table at the same time.

"Yeah."

"Our aunt mentioned you. Is it alright if we sit here?"

"Of course!" Olette nearly jumped out of her seat.

Everyone shoved over before the new additions to the table pilfered chairs from the surrounding area. The blonde one sat next to Roxas and the red head beside Olette.

"So which one of you is which again?" Hayner asked-his tendency to talk with his mouth full had all but disappeared.

"I'm Kairi," the one next to Olette stuck her hand half way up.

"And I'm Namine."

"You said you and Roxas are related?"

_Don't worry, you can have them Hayner. _

"Not by blood. We're only second cousins," Namine spoke first.

The blonde boy ignored how she looked at him when she spoke.

"So why did you transfer to DIH?" Olette packed up the rest of her lunch.

"The climate mostly. Our father is quite sickly…"Kairi trailed off but quickly smiled, "he's already feeling better."

"That's great," the other brunette Selphie nodded, "it's really warm here huh?"

"Mm hm. So Roxas, what kind of bands do you like?" Namine tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

He stared for a second before answering, "uh…Oath keeper and Bond of Flame mostly…"

"All the emo bands," Hayner smirked.

She nodded with a smile that looked slightly fake, "my favourite kind."

_Liar._

"I've never heard of those two though. Could you send me some music sometime?"

"Uh…sure…"

"I think she likes you you'd make such a cute couple!" Olette exclaimed on the ride home-she practically had hearts in her eyes.

"No it wouldn't. It'd be creepy because they're related!" Hayner chimed in._ Jealous._

"Not by blood, remember?"

The bigger straw haired kid glared, "I stand by my decision. Besides, they both have blonde hair and blue eyes; they look like brother and sister."

_That's true._

"Almost _everyone_ here has blue eyes Hayner. And you're the same," she nodded gesturing at all of them. He had to admit, there was an unhealthy amount of people with the same eye colour.

"Yeah but-never mind! You can have Namine and I'll take Kairi."

Olette shook her head, "you make them sound like shoes or something. Anyway, what was it that you were saying Roxas?"

"…That guy who stole my cell phone left his number in the registry."

"Ew, gay creeper!"

"That is kind of weird," Pence agreed, "maybe he's on the run from the law and needs someone's help or he's been kidnapped and the only way to escape is to have someone call the police for him."

"Or maybe he's just a weird guy who's hitting on you."

"Should I just delete it?" he thought out loud. _Hitting on me? No one hits on me. _

"Heck yeah you should!"

The bus came to a screeching halt and they all piled onto the sidewalk which was when someone's very red hair caught his eye. Without bothering to say anything he jumped forward to grab him only to get the door slammed on his hand-the uninjured one of course. Immediately the doors sprang open releasing him but before he could yell for the driver to stop the bus drove away. As one last act of vengeance it coughed smoke into his face.

"What the heck was that Roxas?!" Hayner pulled him back by the shoulder.

He hacked up a lung then rubbed his eyes, "that was the guy. Demyx."

"That freak with the hair? I guess he does look a bit strange."

"Hey losers!"

_Great. Seifer._ Both he and Hayner turned at the same time. The other boy and his lackeys stood in front of Twilight Station-they'd apparently been waiting for them to return. A Struggle bat hung loosely from Seifer's fingers and he wore a smirk along with his customary black toque.

"Let's fight! That preppy school probably made you weak so you're really not worth my time though."

_So in other words you're bored and no one else will hang out with you. _Roxas groaned-to say he wasn't in the mood to Struggle would be a massive understatement.

"Yeah right! You're the one who's gonna lose!" Hayner yelled loud enough for people to whisper disapprovingly as he bounded down the station steps.

"I'm…not really up to it…" he followed the other guy down the stairs but didn't assume a battle stance.

The tall blonde blinked at him, "huh? But you always want to Struggle."

"Maybe the Master should take this one."

Having appealed to Hayner's ego the teen's chest puffed out and he grinned, "Yeah, Seifer is easy enough on my own!"

_Yeah, sure. As long as you leave me out of this. _Roxas looked at both his hands with an inward sigh-bad luck seemed to be following him now. _Great. Just. Great. _

He stared at the foreign name on his phone-Demyx. Just what was this guy's problem anyway? His finger hovered over the send button. _If I call him it could lead to something. But I don't know what. If I delete if…why is this even a hard decision? _At the same time that he dismissed the idea he felt the pull of adventure. What if he didn't call and ended up regretting it later?

"Roxas!"

"Yeah mom?!"

"Dinner!"

He let his phone fall onto his bed then jogged downstairs. His mom and dad sat at the dinner table, their hands resting near their plates. He took a seat and started eating then stopped when he noticed their expressions. His dad had taken his mom's hand.

"Roxas…I don't know how to ask you this…" she murmured and cleared her throat.

"Now now honey…"

"What is it mom?" Roxas stopped his fork mid way to his mouth. He had a feeling what this was about. His parents had been hinting at it for a long time.

"Roxas, are you on drugs?"

…_Or not. _"D-Drugs?! What!?" he slammed his hands down on the table tp.

"You have been acting strangely lately son."

"Strangely?! I cut my hand open, some weirdo stole my cell phone, I got tackled by some security guard because he thought I was a _criminal_ and I got my _other_ hand slammed in a bus door! So, yeah! Maybe I am acting a bit weird!" the blonde took a few breaths after his tirade, "sorry."

They whispered behind their hands then sent him to his room while they talked. He picked up his phone almost immediately once upstairs-_they want strange? _The teen selected Demyx's number and pressed the send button roughly before holding his phone up to his ear. _ I'll give them strange._


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for all the support in the form of story alerts everyone! This fic is kind of on 'slow burn' mode in terms of romance right now but don't worry, there will be much occurring otherwise! I really love Demyx. He's so cute to write ha ha.

Riding on Buses with Boys 

"Hi! Who's this?" a voice that clearly differed from the creeper's responded.

"Uh…I think there's some mistake…"

"Ooh, are you Roxas? I'm Demyx! He told me to tell you something….oh oh oh! Right. Meet me at Destiny Mall at 4pm tomorrow. I'll be wearing a white T-shirt with Bond of Flames written on it."

Roxas raised an eyebrow, "uh…what?"

"That's the message."

"But…why?"

"Oh, I dunno. It's just a big game I guess. I wanna play…"

"Demyx, right?" Roxas put a hand to his forehead, "what's his name? He never told me."

The other guy went silent for a second, "that's classified, got it memorized? That's what he would say! I'll give you a little hint though Roxy! It's starts with an 'A'."

'_Roxy'?_ But he couldn't bring himself to admonish the other person. He frowned-_a game. What is he, a three year old? This all feels really…stupid. How does he even know I'll play along?! _He could've torn his hair out just trying to figure out the reasoning behind the entire thing.

"Okay…so…bye."

"Aw, you're leaving already? Hey, do you have a wii? Let's exchange friend codes!"

"Uh…no, I don't have one. My mom doesn't like video games in the house," he tried to imagine what Demyx would look like but all that came to mind was a very small child.

"Too bad…well, I'll talk to you later!"

_What a weirdo…jeez. _Roxas hung up and lay back in bed. _4pm. That means I'll have to tell everyone what I'm doing…but what will I tell them? I'm going to meet someone I don't even know? _

He huffed and sat back up again-biology homework didn't do itself.

"Roxas, that's totally crazy! You said yourself he was weird. I just don't think it's a good idea," Olette furrowed her brow at him, "at least let us come with you."

"I don't want you guys to get involved."

"Oh come on Roxas, stop being such a hero," Hayner slung his backpack over his shoulder.

The blonde shifted his weight from one foot to the other as they stood waiting for Pence to finish talking to his art teacher, "it'll be fine. I'll keep my phone on. Besides, we'll be in a public place."

The girl wrapped a lock of hair around her finger, "well… …just be careful okay?"

"Yeah."

He waved to his friends as they boarded the bus home and started off in the other direction. The mall didn't take long to walk to from his school. He'd changed out of his uniform in favour of a white t-shirt hoodie, black wife beater and a pair of black and red sneakers-the ones Olette said made his feet look huge.

"So…which store did he say again?" Roxas sighed and flipped open his phone.

"Hey, Demyx…where in the mall?"

"Huh? Ohh…well, he should be pretty noticeable."

He glared into the earpiece, "I don't see him."

"Oh. Okay, I'll call him okay? Bye bye!"

That was when he saw it. White t-shirt with the band name emblazoned on it. Except it wasn't the red head.

"Whoa…dude, it's you!" the security guard from the other day called out. His voice reminded Roxas of a surfer stereotype. Even without the uniform the guy couldn't be missed-scars on his face, long hair and one eye covered by a patch.

"You're not going to tackle me are you?"

The other guy laughed loudly, "harsh! That was mistaken identity man. I like your style kid."

"whatever. You're not the person I'm here for," he grumbled.

"On contraire dude, I am. Here, I've got a riddle for you."

_A __**riddle**__?! What is this, __Indiana Jones__ or something?_ He crossed his arms over his chest, "fine. Go ahead."

"Cool. Okay, at morning I stand on 4 legs, at noon on 2-"

"Before you even finish the answer is man."

"Dude, man, don't even let me finish. Alright, call this number for more information got it? Later Roxas."

_That was anti-climactic. Why would he give me such an easy riddle does he think I'm stupid because I'm blonde?! _He glared at a random person then stomped off to the food court. After ordering some fries he unfolded the piece of paper he'd been given. 'watch out, this guy is a freak' it warned though it looked more like 'uHch ot, his yuy is a reak'. However after years of reading Hayner's writing he understood just fine. He decided to call now, just to get it overwith. It rang a few times but no one answered. For some reason his heart sank though he managed to quickly push the feeling aside. However while he chomped on his fries his phone buzzed in his pocket.

"Roxas? Are you okay?"

"oh, yeah. It was fine."

She breathed a sigh into the mouthpiece, "thank goodness. So what did he want?"

"Uh…it wasn't him. I don't really know what's going. On."

"What do you mean? Roxas is something happened…"

"No, nothing. I just got another number," he murmured.

"Roxas…I wished you'd just stop this."

The blonde stared at his food, "yeah…I'll just do this and then that's it."

"He just seems weird, that's all. Anyway, Hayner and Pence are fighting over who won at Soul Calibur. Okay, so Hayner is arguing. I'll see you tomorrow okay?"

"Yeah. Thanks Olette. Bye."

He hung up then got to his feet-his mom would probably be wondering where he was now. Roxas stood at the stop listening to Bond of Flames' CD on his mp3 player when he saw it. Or rather, him. At first all he could see was the top of the spiky brown hair and Riku's face. Then their hands came into focus. He ducked behind a group of people without thinking. They were holding hands. _I know Sora's affectionate but…_both of them passed by his hiding place not sparing him a second glance-they only had eyes for each other. Cold radiated from his chest until it overcame his entire body-did this mean Sora, his only brother liked guys? _Why didn't he tell me? _The bus drove by and Roxas let his forehead rest in his hand.

"Mom! Where's Sora?!" he called from his room.

His brother hadn't been next door in his own bedroom when Roxas had finally gotten home.

"He's out with Riku until supper!"

The blonde went silent. _What am I even gonna say? 'so I saw you with your boyfriend today'? no, that's too obvious. Dammit. _He groaned and tapped his pencil against his temple.

His phone rang loudly in the quiet room, rousing him from his impromptu deep thinking moment. He picked it up on the first ring, "hello?"

"Hey Roxas."

"You!"

"Keep calling me that and I might have to change my name," the voice chuckled.

"What _is_ your name?"

"That's classified, got it memorized?"

_Woah, sounds like Demyx knows what he's talking about. _

"Sure. Whatever. Why are you doing all this?"

Another laugh, "why not? What, you don't like me? I'm hurt Roxas, hurt."

"I don't know you."

"Yeah, I get that. Listen, I'm not some creeper alright?"

Roxas frowned, "you're not really convincing me."

"You're the one who's playing the game Roxas."

"you practically forced me to!" he snapped at the phone.

"Correction Roxas," the other guy's voice went from light to more than a bit annoyed in a matter of seconds, "I gave you the opportunity. _You_ could've deleted Demyx's number but you called it."

He clenched his jaw, wishing the idiot could be here to see how angry he was, "you're saying this is _my_ fault?!"

"no. of course not Roxas. I'm just telling the facts."

"Yeah, well, don't."

"Something wrong?"

"No…bye," he hung up the phone. This was getting too weird. Random people calling him on the phone, playing 'games' like his life was a _Saw _ and his brother holding hands with a guy. He turned off his cell so the guy wouldn't call back and settled in to wait for Sora.

"Pick up the pace you fuc-"

"Jeez, Mr.Highwind is such an ass about gym even though he'd probably die if he tried doing laps," Hayner wheezed.

"Sounds like you will too Hayner," Pence laughed as he lapped the blonde for the second time.

"Sh-Shut up!"

"Don't look now Hayner but the love of your life is in the bleachers!"

The taller teen turned his head to look, "l-look she's not the l-love of my life!"

Namine and Kairi waved-Hayner immediately returned the gesture with a bit _too _much enthusiasm. They turned to each other and appeared to laugh with each other, probably at the guy who had now come to a stop. Roxas pulled up too just so Hayner wouldn't look like an idiot.

"Th-they're laughing. I'd like to see them run with Mr. Highwind screaming at them."

"Hey! You two over there, get movin'!"

_In the end Sora stayed over at Riku's. And he didn't even come home this morning. I guess I'll have to talk to him tonight._

"Roxas, come on!"

He snapped to attention and started running again-Namine and Kairi had left the bleachers.

Probably because his hand still had gauze all over it Ms. Gainsborough had excused him from class for the rest of the week so he had a free period. Instead of doing homework the blonde headed to one of the empty classrooms and tried calling the number again. Again the person didn't pick up and he glared at his phone. He dialled Demyx's number too but the hyperactive guy didn't answer either. _Fine. You were only my second choice anyway. I was just going to ask why that guy wasn't on the bus this morning. _

Roxas moved to the window to watch the gym class playing soccer outside. From here he could spot Wakka and probably Tidus kicking soccer balls at each other. Mr. Highwind's voice carried right across the field and through the window pane. Next door he could hear a history class being taught by some boring sounding teacher he didn't know.

_I wonder who's phone number it is. That stupid security guard said he was a freak. Somehow I'm not surprised. Maybe there's something I have to do before he'll pick up? _His head hurt just thinking of it-he felt kind of like he'd been dropped right in the middle of an RPG.

"Roxas?"

He stood up straight and turned around quickly, "uh, yeah?"

"Do you have this period off too?" Namine stepped inside the room and closed the door behind her.

His eyes flicked to the now closed exit-he'd essentially been trapped. Sweat started to bead on his forehead, "no."

"oh my Roxas, skipping class? I wouldn't have thought you did that," she hopped onto a desk and let her feet dangle just above the floor.

"I'm not."

The girl cocked her head, "ohhhkay…?"

He held up his hand, "I'm excused for the week."

"Oh! Did you hurt yourself badly?" all at once she held his hand in between both of hers.

He scanned her uncertainly, "uh…I had to get stitches."

"Your poor hand! Hey, I was wondering…me and Kairi are kind of lost around here…do you think you could give us a tour?" he couldn't help noticing she still held onto his hand.

"um…I think Olette or Pence would be better for that. I…I gotta go," Roxas broke away, grabbing his backpack as he passed it.

"But um…we're family!"

"I know. But I don't know all the places for tourists," he took off before she could say anything else. _What was __**that**__ about?!_ He wiped his hands on his pants-just weird. Maybe Olette would know something about it though he probably wouldn't get a chance to tell her until after school. In the mean time maybe homework was a good idea after all.

He'd just sat down in the library when his cell buzzed. The teen glanced down at it-a new text message. Stop calling me. Roxas raised an eyebrow but didn't return the text. _No more crap, I wanna get this math done so Mr. Leonheart doesn't make me write another essay on why math is infinitely important. _He hoisted the heavy textbook out of his bag and let it fall onto the table with a loud thud. The old man librarian's eye twitched at him.The rest of his supplies made less satisfying sounds when he dropped them though Merlin still cleared his throat in a gesture that clearly said 'be quiet!'.

Meet me at the arcade at 12 on Saturday_._ The next text message said. Okay. He returned. I'll be playing House of the Dead.

_Is it actually gonna be him or someone else? Last time it wasn't Demyx who met me. _Vaguely he thought of how stupid he was being about the whole thing. _He could be a pedo for all I know. _The boy decided not to tell Olette because she'd only freak out on him. Roxas stared at the papers on the table-_this…makes no sense._

Quadratic equations swam in front of him and had they been people they probably would've slapped him in the face. He let his forehead rest against the tabletop in utter defeat. No matter how many times Olette explained it to him the knowledge still trickled out of his brain. _I guess I'll have to get her to help me with my homework this weekend…_

"Roxas?"

He bit back a sigh and looked up from his work, "yeah."

"Sorry to bother you. But…did Namine talk to you?" Kairi played with the sleeves on her blouse.

"Uh…yeah, she did."

"Oh. Just…never mind what she said okay? It's not important."

_Not important? This is kind of…weird. Why is she telling me not to listen to her sister? _He stared at his feet, "uh…okay."

"Okay, good! So, what're you doing?" her face brightened almost immediately.

"Math homework."

Without bothering to ask she peered over his shoulder and pointed at the question he'd just solved, "that one's not right. Are you having trouble? Maybe I could help you out."

"It's…" he began, fully intending to say no, "yeah. Thanks."

The red haired girl smiled at him then pulled up a chair, "alright so you use this formula…"

Once again he stood waiting at the bus stop with his friends and two additions to the group. Kairi and Namine had changed into pink and white sundresses. _So they still match even if they don't want to. Me and Sora do the same thing…I guess I won't be able to talk to him today either with everyone over._

"Okay okay okay. And so then Hayner runs up the guy all ready to fight when this huge guy-the Struggle champion-walks up and totally beats him down in one hit!"

"Pence! Don't tell that story!"

"Hey hey, look! Ax, look, it's Roxy!"

His head snapped up so fast everyone looked at him like he'd broken his neck. _That sounded like Demyx. Where is he?_ He glanced around the crowd moving past them down the street searching for that red hair. Within 3 seconds he found it even amongst the sea of red coats and hats that appeared to be in style all of a sudden.

"Roxas what is it-"the rest of her sentence got cut off when he abruptly leapt into the current of people. The current of very _tall_ people. His size helped him only with squeezing through tiny spaces no one else could but every other time he got pushed back. By the time he fought his way to the front the guy's red hair had nearly disappeared into the distance. But then he stopped.

"You-you bastard!" Roxas yelled at him though it was doubtful he'd be heard.

Mr. Phone Thief waved at the teen then continued walking. The blonde stood hunched over breathing heavily for a few minutes. _I almost had him! Stupid people holding me back._ Then he remembered he'd just run off on his friends for the second time. Though at least this hadn't ended in another hand injury.

A downpour dumped rain on him. _Great._

Roxas began trudging back to the bus stop when someone put an umbrella over his head.

"Axel-whoops! Forget I ever said that okay?! Uh…have his umbrella," Demyx rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish smile.

"Why? It's…so tacky."

The other guy, also a blonde with blue eyes thus proving Olette's statement, stood taller than him. But not by too much. He laughed, "Yeah, I know. I told him not to buy it but…anyway just take it or he'll kill me."

"Uh…okay…Thanks."

"Mission complete! You know, you're cuter than I thought you'd be! I'm not hitting on you or anything though okay? I've already got someone so….anyway bye!"

_And you're weirder in person. Whatever…_he continued walking back to the bus stop. He'd already nearly drowned by the time Demyx had given him the umbrella but at least he wouldn't get any wetter. At least until a speeding car went through a puddle that created a tidal wave which in turn smacked right into Roxas. _I hate my life. _

"You look like you just went swimming in a puddle," Hayner commented when he burst through the front door.

"Yeah. I did."

"Woah, Rox! You got totally kill by a car didn't you?!" Sora exclaimed as he leapt down the last two stairs leading from the second floor.

He glared, "thanks for the explanation."

"Who's ugly umbrella is _that_?" Hayner snorted, pointing at the now folded up device. The flames still remained visible despite it being closed.

"Ax…uh…someone just randomly gave it to me."

The taller blonde raised an eyebrow but Olette swatted him on the shoulder, "if Roxas says that's what happened then that's the truth."

_Thanks Olette. _He shot an appreciative smile at her then went about shaking some of the water from his hair like a small, annoyed, pale haired dog. Sora handed him a towel with a laugh at his flatted down tresses and sopping clothes. _Some brother you are. _He rubbed his hair dry first then jogged upstairs to the bathroom to grab another towel. Riku stood in front of the sink, his eyes closed probably due to the soap on his face.

"Sora?"

"Roxas."

They didn't speak after that even though Roxas wanted to ask why the silver haired guy was washing his face at their sink without a shirt on. _He has such a good body. No wonder Sora likes him. Wait. Stop that thought. _He grabbed a towel and fled the bathroom to his own bedroom.

Even after changing he lingered in his room. _What if they'd just finished having sex and-_the thought was too disturbing to continue. His stomach clenched. _I have to talk to him about this. _Of course the idea of his brother being gay had never occurred to him because Sora seemed so…straight. If such a thing was even possible.

He sat next to Olette despite a spot being open beside Namine. The brunette girl smiled at him and gestured to the TV, "as you can see Hayner and Pence are fighting again."

"When are they not?"

"Hey Roxas? Can I talk to you in private for a minute?" she whispered in his ear while everyone's attention was elsewhere.

He nodded and they moved downstairs to the basement storage room. He didn't bother wondering if anyone had seen them. After flicking on the light he sat down on a box that said 'Roxas' baby stuff' on it.

"What is it Olette?"

He had a feeling what this was about but asked anyway.

"I'm worried about you. I…I know I've this a _lot_ lately Roxas but it's true. You're my best friend so I don't want anything to happen to you."

"I…I know. I'm sorry. I just…have a lot going on."

Her hand rested on his forearm, "do you wanna talk about it?"

The blonde looked up at her, his mouth open to speak, then shook his head. _I don't want to bug her with my problems. She's already got her own. _

The girl nodded, "alright. Just tell me if you ever want to. I know I'm not Hayner or Pence or Sora but…if it helps, just think of me as a guy."

"A really girly guy maybe."

She punched his shoulder-hard, "hey!"

A smile swept across his face and rubbed where she'd hit him, "okay. Never mind. You punch harder than Hayner.

End chapter 2.

I know, not much of a cliffhanger there but the chapter was getting quite out of control ha ha. So I ended it here. Tune in next time for more drama, more Roxas, more...er...Axel stalking Roxas!


	3. Chapter 3

He stood in front of the arcade, his heart pounding from a mixture of nerves and adrenaline. He stigled a yawn then stepped inside. Neon lights and flashing game signs made his eyes practically sizzle from the heat. Again he'd worn his favourite shoes his Oathkeeper t-shirt, and a pair of khaki shorts with a black and white checked wristband Hayner had given him for his birthday last year. He stood on his tip toes to see past the DDR machine then found it. House of the Dead. Entertaining one last thought of running away Roxas started towards it. A group had formed around it and he could hear people shouting chants. The blonde slipped through the crowd to the front. A kind of short kid stood with the gun in his hand taking down zombies at rapid fire pace, not even flinching when the Reload! Message popped up on screen. He had dark steel coloured hair that fell in a curtain over on eye and wore all black. _Why don't I doubt that this is who I'm supposed to meet? _

All at once the crowd began to thin out as the other gamers went back to their own machines. The credits had begun to roll down the screen. _He beat the game? _At the end the high score board came up-one name dominated the entire thing. Zexion.

The player turned to him with a frown, "Roxas, I presume."

"Yeah."

"Why are you doing this?"

He blinked, "what do you mean?"

"I don't like you. Don't think because he likes you all his friends have to."

"What's your problem? Do you have a thing for him or something?"

Zexion's face didn't change from the expressionless mask he'd worn before, "I have been trying to get his attention for months. Then _you_ come in, a kid, and suddenly he likes you."

"Then go ahead and take him, jeez? Whoever said I wanted him anyway?"

"Here is the deal. You beat my score on any of these machines and I will tell you the next number. If you do not then I will tell him that you already have a boyfriend and have no interest in anyone else," Zexion handed him a few rolls of quarters, "you only have until these run out."

Suddenly everyone formed a group again. He heard people saying how crazy he was to fight Zexion, how he'd never win. _Thanks for the vote of confidence everyone. Okay. I need to see which games he's best at and __**not**__ choose those ones._

Roxas accessed the high scores for DDR first. Zexion, S rank on Heavy on every song with a numerical point value of over one million. _He's gotten perfect on every song on every difficulty?! That's…impossible! _The Mortal Kombat machine yielded the same result along with the Donkey Kong, Space Invaders and Pacman machines. _I guess I'll just have to play one until I win. _He decided on DDR first only because he'd played it a couple times over at Pence's house.

After choosing the 2nd hardest difficulty and an upbeat J-Pop song he jumped up on the platform. The arrows flew past his eyes so fast his feet had no time to respond. Even the announcer berated him when he lost spectacularly. _Okay, nevermind. _He hopped down amongst laughs of the other gamers. "_At _least I'm not a loser who sits in an arcade all day," Roxas grumbled under his breath then moved over to the Mortal Kombat machine.

Scorpion kicked his ass on the second level. _Dammit. This isn't fair, I never play video games…_he continued fighting against the machines though he really wanted to throw a chair through the screen.

"You know, the trick is to beat the highest score on the easiest game and difficulty," a voice whispered in his ear.

He jumped back, blinking to clear his eyes, "A-Axel. What're you doing here?!"

The red head smirked, "I guess you figured out my name. I've always been around. Even when Xigbar was telling his stupid riddle. But I suppose it's a good thing I came today."

"Oh. What's that guy Zexion's problem anyway?! I don't even play games."

"Oh you know, the usual. He has a creepy infatuation with me and hates to see me hanging out with anyone but him."

Roxas turned his attention to his shoes for a second before looking up at Axel. _Way_ up-the guy was a giant compared to him. Other than the hair and eyes the red head had triangular tattoos on each cheek under his eyes. The blonde thought of asking about them but in the end settled on his old friend hostility instead, "what do you want with me?"

"Why so angry Roxas? I'm only planning elaborate ways to hit on you."

They moved out of the darkness of the arcade into the nearby food courts in silence other than Axel absentmindedly flicking a lighter open and closed. Roxas stared at the hand performing the motion hoping to stop it with his mind. _That's really annoying._

"What? Oh, this pissing you off? Yeah, everyone else is always bitching about it too," the tall guy looked like he would stop then started again, "nervous habit."

_Why would you be nervous about talking to __**me**__? He nodded in a gesture of what he hoped could be taken as acceptance._

You know…nevermind," Axel ran a hand through his hair.

The blonde could feel his stomach twisting into knots that grew more intricate as the lack of speech went on. _I should say something. But…what? _Saved by the bell-or rather his cellphone ringing.

"Uh…sorry. Hello? What? What?! Okay I'll be there soon," he got up from his seat and threw his remaining quarters onto the table, "tell Zexion I'm not playing his stupid games."

"Y-You're so cool. Oh shit, Demyx is getting to me. Uh…do you need a ride somewhere?" the other teen's face had gone an alarming shade of crimson.

Roxas' brain had pretty turned to mush and he could hardly string a sentence together, "hospital…in Twilight Town. Kind of far…"

Axel shook his head furiously, "no, don't worry about it. Got it memorized?"

They passed the arcade again-Zexion had moved onto Taiko Drum Master by the looks of it. But the red head steered him away when the shorter boy tried to go inside. _His quarters…_

"Don't worry about it Roxas. He'd just throw a bitch fit right now. You look like you're gonna puke."

He nodded. _I __**feel**__ like I'm gonna throw up._

"It'll be okay."

_What if it's not? Hayner…you're such an idiot. _Roxas closed his eyes and let himself be led-all he needed was to start crying like a baby. He didn't trip or even hesitate in walking though he couldn't see and probably should've been wary.

"Come on," Axel opened the door to his car and the blonde climbed in, "hey, seatbelt or you won't just be a visitor at the hospital."

He went through the motion mechanically, a thousand thoughts flashing in his head like fireworks. The car's engine coughed once, twice then finally turned over. A Bond of Flame song pounded through the speakers for a second until Axel unplugged the mp3 player with an annoyed grunt.

"Sorry. Okay, we have to take the ferry across right?"

"Yeah."

Axel drove fast-too fast for his liking but he didn't complain in light of the current situation. _Dammit Hayner you have to be okay. _His eyes opened and he tried to blink away the tears that abruptly rushed forward. A couple slipped down his cheeks then splattered on his lap.

"Roxas…hey…it'll be okay," the tattooed guy looked at him, his short eyebrows furrowed.

"Y-Yeah. S-Sorry."

The taller guy said nothing. Roxas stared at his knees letting himself cry after reasoning that Axel was too busy driving to watch. He didn't notice that they'd reached the hospital until one of Axel's long fingered hands touched his shoulder.

"Hey…hang in there."

He almost said 'come with me' but in the end just nodded. He didn't even know the guy and besides all this was probably about wanting to have someone with him. Roxas moved inside the white building, his stomach clenching once he started walking down the loud hospital corridor. He looked around feeling like his head had been filled with cotton.

"Roxas!" she ran up to him and her fingertips brushed his hand.

"What…happened?"

The brunette took a deep breath, "he was walking when one of Seifer's friends jumped him. I…"she curled inward, "I told him not to provoke them but he didn't listen."

He pushed his own hazy emotions aside to wrap his arms around her, "it'll be okay Olette."

"W-Where were you Roxas? Why…"

"I'm sorry."

Of course sorry didn't cut it. He'd gone behind his friends' backs for someone he didn't even know. His entire body had an unnatural weight to it.

She pushed away from him and wiped her eyes, "he just got out of emergency. He'll probably want to talk to you."

"Olette I-"

"It's fine Roxas. I understand," a thin smile ghosted across her face and she started down the hall. He followed behind her without a word-the way she navigated the corridors made him think she personally worked in the hospital. _Her dad is a doctor so I guess…_

They passed a few people in wheelchairs and dragging IV stands before reaching the recovery room. Hayner's parents formed a half circle around the bed while Pence hovered in the corner staring out the window. The blonde hesitantly approached the bed, eyes downcast. _I should've been there._

"Hey, Roxas."

He didn't look up, "Hayner…I'm really…I'm sorry."

The injured teen snorted and shot a look at his parents until they slowly shuffled out of the room.

"Come on guys, you're killin' me."

Olette frowned, "Hayner…"

"I can't talk when you two losers are in here."

She flared but grabbed Pence's wrist and they too left. Roxas lifted his gaze then averted it again. Hayner's one eye had swollen shut, his lip split and he had a couple cuts that had been stitched closed though he probably had more injuries hidden beneath the bedsheets.

"I-I'm sorry. This is my fault."

Hayner sighed, "nah. Olette told me to back off but you know…just stupid I guess."

"Yeah."

"Hey, shut up! Oh come on Roxas, stop blubbering. Stop being a wimp."

"Are you…okay?" he squeezed the last tears from his eyes then forced himself to stop.

"So not manly. Why do I even hang out with you?"

Roxas shrugged-he couldn't even think of something witty to say. The other guy sighed loudly.

"You're so annoying."

"I know."

"Where were you, anyway?" Hayner shifted in his bed and frowned at the blankets when they started wrapping around his legs.

"…At the arcade."

"LAME. You ditched me to go _there_?"

He let his weight slide from one foot to the other, "there's this guy who has the high score on every machine…I was trying to beat him."

"Idiot, you don't even play video games."

"I know. I lost pretty bad," finally he could keep his eyes level with the other teen's.

"I'll beat that guy's score," Hayner half grinned.

~**~

Roxas fell into bed with a sigh. His eyes burned from his bawling session earlier and sleep called his name very loudly at this point. _Mom didn't even ask what happened-I guess Hayner's mom already told her. _Sora hadn't appeared at home either but when he asked their mother said he'd gone out. _Probably with Riku._ A yawn forced his mouth open and he pulled off his clothes. The blue eyed boy rolled out of bed then dragged himself to his dresser. After pulling out a pair of pyjamas he crawled back under his covers and fell asleep almost right away.

Sunlight shining in his window woke him at about 9 am. He didn't bother trying to fall back asleep but groaned and flipped onto his back, one arm resting over his eyes. He could hear his mom moving around downstairs but even closer to himself he could hear Sora tossing and turning in his own room. _I guess now's my chance to talk to him._

He rubbed his eyes and swung his feet around to let them rest on the floor then plodded down the hall to Sora's room. For a few seconds he lingered outside, hand poised to turn the door handle. His palm felt like it had moisture dripping off it like a waterfall. _Why am I so nervous? It's not like it's a big deal._

His knuckles rapped against the wood of the door. No one answered but he finally let his fingers curl around the doorknob anyway before slowly opening the door. He sucked in a breath, heart pounding like a frightened animal trying to escape its cage.

Sora sat on his bed wiping the sleep from his eyes. He blinked blearily at his visitor, "s'up Rox?"

"I gotta talk to you Sor."

The brunette yawned loudly, "can it wait?"

"uh…" he scratched his head, "…no?"

"Okay! I'm awake, what is it?" his brother shook off the last vestiges of sleep as if he had never even been tired at all.

Roxas closed the door behind him and fell backwards onto his butt in front of Sora's bed. He rested his forearms on his knees then unloaded his question.

"Are you gay?"

"Nope! I like girls. Hey, why, are _you_? Can I choose your boyfriend? Huh? Can I?" the other teen leaned forward with a smile practically splitting his face in two.

"But I saw you holding Riku's hand!"

"Rox, shh. Riku's got a lot going on-he needs me so…I thought if I went out with him I could be there. I feel bad for him! Besides…I know he likes me so I wanna make him happy just for a bit," Sora glanced at a picture on his nightstand then laughed, "sorry, that was kinda serious business wasn't it?"

_But wouldn't it hurt him more if he found out that you were going out with him out of pity? _His face must have betrayed his thoughts because his brother frowned.

"I know, it was kinda stupid to do."

"Yeah. I…how do you even…if you're not…"

The teen sitting on the bed went red, "well…Riku's hot. I can appreciate good looking people. And anyway it's not like he's really very touchy."

_He's too emo. Or he knows you're faking. _Roxas nodded slowly to show he understood.

"Wait! Roxas, _you_ could go out with Riku!" he looked so proud of himself that the blonde didn't have the heart to strangle him-yet.

"He's not really my type… and hey! Whoever said I was like that?!"

Sora stared at him and held out his hands palm up, his head titled to one side slightly, "come on Rox."

"Come on, what?"

"Come o~on."

His face heated up considerably and he started looking for ways of escape, "I-this is-"

"I still heart you Roxas. Even though I'm obligated to by brotherly law," Sora threw a pillow at him, "stop pouting. So, who do you like?"

~~**~~

_That went better than I thought it would. Even if Sora is an idiot. And has a list of all the single gay guys in the area. _He shuddered-_half of them are scary looking. And really old. Or too young. Or emo. _Roxas had reached Sandlot when he noticed something amiss.

Seifer stood with Fuu and Rai snapped at two kids he'd never seen before. He ducked into an alley to watch for the moment. Words he couldn't hear flew out of the angry kid's mouth though he spoke too fast to glean any information from them. From the random things he _could_ get it sounded like Seifer was pissed at them for beating Hayner up so badly. The taller ones yelled something back and grabbed hold of Seifer's collar but before he could punch Fuu had knocked him back. She rammed the heel of her hand into the first guy's nose while Rai slugged the other across the face. It didn't take long for them to retaliate.

The biggest of the two managed to get a grip on Rai and throw him to the ground. Roxas didn't have to hear to know what the eye patch wearing girl said. Probably something like RAGE. Far from being a lightweight-despite her size- when Fuu hit someone they went down. She just obviously hadn't expected them to get back up again. He watched her stumble backwards then fall while Seifer ran past her and whacked the two outsiders across the head with a struggle bat. _Mental note: don't piss off Seifer for real. _

He slid further into the alleyway when they walked by.

"That was awesome, y'know?"

"yeah, we really kicked those losers' asses."

"Wait…why'd we do it again? I forget, y'know?"

"IDIOT."

Their voices faded into the distance and Roxas emerged from his hiding place with a shake of his head. _I'll have to tell Hayner about this. _He continued on his way to Tram Common to meet Olette. _She's probably still mad at me…_

Almost right away he spotted her standing in front of the item shop. And she wasn't alone.

The fair haired boy approached slowly willing her not to see him so that he could say he looked for her but eventually gave up when he couldn't find her. But she stood on her tippy toes and waved. _That's it. This is…_

"Roxas, hey. Namine and I were just looking at some things. How are you?"

He shrugged without acknowledging the other girl, "fine."

"So, I was thinking that we could go to a movie?"

_She never said anything about that. This was supposed to be about homework. _His head started screaming 'Fight or flight!' at him but he may as well have been nailed to the ground. Namine smiled-she looked pretty when she did though he couldn't call her ugly at all regardless. He forced a smile onto his face and her cheeks flushed pink. Which was when he got it. This wasn't about homework. This wasn't even about Olette. This was all about him and Namine. He could've glared at her but stopped himself only because of what had happened with Hayner. _This doesn't mean I have to like her. Besides…besides what? I'm not going out with anyone. So why did I think of Axel? _

"Roxas? Ready?" the brunette flashed a smile.

"Yeah…"

They headed to Twlight Station-being so small the town didn't actually have its own movie theatre so they'd have to go to the World That Never Was. _That place is depressing. Even its name is. It's emo paradise. _The trio boarded the train after flashing their student passes. To his alarm Namine sat beside him while Olette abandoned him completely and sat on the bench across from them both.

"Hey Roxas, did you tell Namine about how you and Hayner are entering the Struggle tournament this summer?"

He shook his head. _I don't even talk to her so how could I? _when his mouth remained firmly shut his friend stared at him in a way that said 'so then tell her!'.

"You heard her," Roxas murmured.

Namine nodded with a tight lipped smile and shot a look at Olette.

"Oh, what movie do you guys want to see?"

The pale girl put a finger to her lips, "hm…what about the new one with Jennifer Aniston?"

_Chick flick. Ugh. _He kept his face impartial somehow but inside he was sticking a finger down his throat in disgust. He expected Olette to say something negative about it but instead grinned.

"I heard that was a good one!"

This had to be punishment. That malicious glint in her eyes wasn't just his imagination, was it? Roxas sighed-_I hate going to the movie with girls. They'll probably make me pay too. _The teen crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his seat. Whoever had invented girly movies needed to go and die already.

The entire ride to The World That Never Was became occupied with Namine attempting to talk to him and Roxas thinking up new mono-syllabic words that effectively communicated his disinterest. He had a new appreciation for Fuu that was for sure. It continued until she finally asked the question. The forbidden-among Roxas' friends-question.

"So what's your favourite Bond of Flames and Oathkeeper songs?"

He turned to her, "my favourite? Well, it depends. On which album? I can't choose out of all of them. Maybe Suffering Blackness by Oathkeeper from their 3rd album and Untitled from Bond of Flames' 1st one. Their old stuff is the best but I still listen to their new CDs anyway."

"O-Oh?"

"Yeah, the melody in S.F is just really-"

"Alright alright fanboy we get it," Olette laughed but her one eyebrow was cocked in annoyance.

_Sorry…? I guess I deserve this but…stupid Axel. _He settled back into sulking about the movie choice until he got to his feet and they all shuffled off the train. He half expected the red haired thief to be on the other side of the station getting onto a train so Roxas would have to chase him-he seemed to have an uncanny knowledge of where the blonde would be and when. It made Roxas scowl just thinking about it.

"Okay, so the movie theatre's…this way!"

Olette pulled them both along with her and they entered the cinema. Which was when the brown haired girl put a hand over her mouth and gasped, "oh no! I forgot! I was supposed to visit Hayner now!"

_Smooth Olette. Really, I'm completely in the dark about what you're doing. _He sighed softly.

"I'll come with you. I have something to tell Hayner."

"Oh really? How about you tell me and I'll pass it along."

He shook his head, "no, it's something important."

She put her hands on her hips-_since when does Olette do that_?-and flicked her hair out of her face, "what, you don't trust me?"

_It's kind of hard to think of you as a guy when you're acting like such a girl. _Roxas stared at the box office then at his friend. She tapped her foot until he finally ran a hand over his spikes.

"I'll just tell him later."

"Okay, see you two later then!" he could've sworn she winked at Namine.

The blonde girl walked along side him, her hand kept hitting against his. _Do you have to stand so close? _They approached the window and asked for tickets which apparently he was supposed to pay for. So after shelling out 15 bucks for a movie he didn't even want to see they moved on to the snack bar.

"Do you want some candy?" she stopped him.

_So you mean do I want to buy __**you**__ candy?_ He shrugged hoping she'd get annoyed and move on.

"Well, I do!"

When he didn't follow she grabbed his wrist and pulled him along. Shielded beneath a layer of glass sat the candy-skittles, junior mints and gummy everything peered up at him. Namine's face grew closer to the force field until her features were illuminated by the backlight.

"Hm…what to choose…"

_How about none of them?_ He stared pleadingly at the person behind the counter as if they'd help him in his time of need. Their name tag told him their name was Lexaeus and he towered over Roxas like a colossal beast. When Namine addressed him the brown haired giant said nothing.

"…hey, I'll have this!" she pointed to the skittles and leaned forward, "oh, and a large coke!"

Lexaeus grunted then walked away to get the pop. The spiky haired teen prepared to dig out his wallet but she'd already handed over the money.

"You sure you don't want anything? I'm paying-it's only fair!"

He shook his head-_okay; maybe I misjudged her a bit._ They moved on to the room with the purple sign over the entrance and traversed the still lit room. _Please don't say you want to sit in the front. _

"Hm…I'm thinking middle! What about you?"

Roxas shrugged, "as long as it's not the first four rows I don't care."

She grinned, "yeah, I learned that lesson the hard way."

The pair took a seat in the middle of the row eight rows from the back. Namine slid her pop into the cup holder then sat down. He took a deep breath and did the same.

"So, Roxas, what's up with that Olette girl?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…she's kind of weird. No offence. But is she like…a lesbian?" the girl took a long sip of her coke.

"O-Olette?! She's-Olette's _not_ gay!"

She blinked at him and shrugged, "she just hangs around with me and Kairi a lot. Like…she's hanging on every word, you know?"

"Yeah…well, she's not. Olette only has her dad so…she doesn't have many girl friends," he tugged on the zipper on his hoodie. _I shouldn't be telling her this…_

"Oh…so she just wants to be friends…"

"Yeah."

"That's great! I just thought she was weird but now I know that…does she like shopping?"

He stared at her for a good minute while she continued to prattle on about all the fun they'd have-he wanted to say Olette hated shopping. Just to shut her up. But he didn't have to seeing as the lights started to dim and she fell silent almost immediately.

"That looks like a good movie," she commented during the previews.

"I guess…" _Yeah, it looks __**really**__ good. Not. _He tried to concentrate on the pictures on the screen but the moment the scene flashed to a girl trying on shoes he zoned out. Especially when the jaunty theme music began. _Ugh…Axel probably thinks I'm an idiot because of yesterday. What a great way to impress someone-bum a ride in their car then cry all over the place. Even if his car was a piece of crap that's not the point. _He sighed. _Why do I even care what he thinks anyway?_

"Hey, Roxas! Did you fall asleep? Sorry, it must've been boring to you huh?"

The blonde sat upright with a start blinking to clear his vision in the now lit theatre. He yawned, "it was a chick flick."

"Oh come on, it wasn't _that_ bad!" she stood up leaving her left over drink in the cup holder and placing her hands on her hips.

He got to his feet and cast a glance at the abandoned drink then shrugged. _Yeah it was. _They fought their way back to the aisle which was when it happened. She slipped a hand into his. His stomach dropped but he couldn't bring himself to pull away like she had chopped off his fingers.

"So where to now?"

"Uh…home?" he suggested.

"Sure!"

_No. not you coming to my house. Me going home and you doing the same. _

"Roxy!" Demyx nearly pushed him to the floor from behind, "are you watching a movie too?"

_Ow…don't mind me; I just wanted to be able to walk after today. _He turned around after the other guy let him go happy for the break from hand holding.

"Hey Demyx…"

"Oh! Who're you?! Are you Roxas'-"

"Cousin," he cut in, "she's my cousin."

Demyx grinned, "Xiggy! Xiggy look how pretty her hair is!"

"Dude, Demy why're you walking up to random people?"

_It's__** him**__? They know each other?_ He watched 'Xiggy' stroll up to them-instead of his security uniform he wore a pair of fluorescent green swim trunks and a t-shirt with a wave on it. His hair had been pulled back in a ponytail as usual. _This isn't the beach. It's gonna get cold soon-I bet his entire closet is outfits like that. _The surfer threw an arm around the shorter guy's shoulders.

"I'm _not_. You know Roxy."

"Oh yeah. Mr. Smartass. What's up Roxas?" Xigbar inclined his head.

"Nothing…"

"We were just going actually."

Demyx stuck out his bottom lip, "aw…okay. Let's go Xiggy!"

"Later dude."

"Uh…wait Demyx. Tell…TellAxelthanksforyesterday!" he said entirely too quickly while twisting his wristband around on his arm.

"The mullet wearing teenager smiled and nodded, "okay! I'll tell him!"

The other pair waved-well, Demyx did-then continued on to whichever film the two were going to see. Namine and Roxas started in the other direction but before they got even five feet from the place she let him have it.

"Why did you call me your cousin?!"

He stared, one eyebrow raised, "because you are…"

"3rd cousins. Not even really related!"

"But we're still family."

"I…I don't get it!" she clenched her fists at her sides.

"And I don't get _you_! I don't even know you and-"

"I like you Roxas! Is…that wrong?" the girl didn't cry, her eyebrows knitted together but she didn't look away from his face.

"But how?! You don't even know me Namine!"

"Do you believe in past lives? Or the transfer of memories to another body?"

_WHAT?!_ He shook his head, "no. Say whatever you want but my heart is my own! People's memories, past lives, that stuff isn't."

A crowd had started to form around them but he hardly noticed in light of him yelling at Namine. She wouldn't look away-her blue eyes continued burning holes into his skin.

"In his past…we were together. Maybe not really us and maybe not in the same bodies but-"

"I don't care about the past!"

Finally a tear slid down her cheek though she quickly wiped it away, "you're different from before."

"Whatever," he spared her one last glance then continued on his way home. Maybe this couldn't be counted as the most chivalrous of actions but he'd at least set her straight. _I can't believe she wanted to go out with me just because of something some phony psychic probably told her. _He caught the train almost immediately after arriving at the station. Other than him no one else sat in the same car. Of course he could see people through the small windows but they didn't look his way. Except for one. A smirk crossed Axel's face and he started to saunter over. _Where am I? Okay, maybe I can still run._

The red head slipped into the car. Roxas tried to get to his feet but Axel reached him before he could actually go anywhere. The small teen took a deep breath in when the other guy leaned over until his lips brushed Roxas' ear.

"You're welcome."

He jumped back in his seat-not that he could move anywhere really, "wh-what?"

"You old Demyx to say thank. So you're welcome, " Axel's breath whispered across the flesh of his neck, the tall guy's voice sounded low and smooth, "what happened to your hand Roxas?"

"Cut it open in Biology," Roxas breathed out.

'Hm. Biology," his hand found the blonde's smaller one and pulled back. His smile grew wider when he heard the kid hold his breath. The green eyes examined the white gauze bandage, an unreadable expression crossing over his face. His lips pressed to the patch of exposed flesh by the blonde's thumb.

"W-what're you doing?"

Roxas' other hand clenched-_did he just __**lick**__ me?! _He felt his face go red, "Ax-Axel stop."

"Huh? Oh, s-sorry I got…just, sorry. Got it memorized?"

"Is that your catchphrase or something?"

The crimson haired guy got to his feet then plopped down on the seat next to Roxas. He wore a pair of dark loose fit jeans and a red t-shirt under an open black blazer. His shoes looked like they'd seen better days. _So many holes…what happens when it rains?_

"So where are you headed Roxy?"

"Don't call me that." He didn't miss the fact that Axel hadn't answered his question.

"Demyx does. Oh great, you like that idiot more than me! I'm so hurt Roxas. I'll go home and cry now!" he wailed louder than strictly necessary.

"Yeah but…he's…no I don't. Shut up Axel."

"You're cute you know?" Axel messed up the blonde spikes, "are you going home?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Mm…I don't know. I just jumped on the train when I saw you get on," the red head shrugged, "Marluxia's gonna kill me."

"You're…stupid."

"Twilight Station."

"My stop," Roxas added and got to his feet. Axel followed him without a word.

"I heard you were on a fate. So I was jealous Roxy."

As the crowd grew thickr their hands automatically joined so they wouldn't get separated. _But why do I even care? Just because he's good looking…_ he finally emerged from the station and took a deep breath.

"It's so busy around this time…"

"I noticed. Where to Roxy?"

He rolled his eyes, "_I_'m going home, I don't know where you're headed."

"Tell me something-are you just being a dick to me because you don't know me or are you always this mean?" Axel grinned.

"I'm always like this."

"Hot. Hey, you like Bond of Flames right?" the head cocked to one side. _It's kinda a cute gesture…Doesn't really suit him. Reminds me of Olette…_

"They're my favourite band!"

The red head rummaged around in his pockets and produced a crimson mp3 player. A Bond of Flames song title scrolled across the screen, "mine too."

"What's your favourite song?"

"Now that's just cruel Roxy. Making me choose one. Maybe Untitled. But then there's Polygraph, right now…Hm…"

"Untitled is great! I liked all their songs though! Last year I went to go see them in concert and I started crying the minute they came out on stage-Hayner still laughs at me. But was just so awesome I couldn't help it!" he let go over Axel's hand to make vague gestures in the air.

"Wow. You didn't strike me as the crying type Roxas."

His face went red and he pulled at a loose thread on his shirt, "I did yesterday."

"That's because your friend was in trouble right? It's different," one of the skinny teen's arms wrapped around the blonde's shoulders in a one armed hug. Then he scratched the back of his neck, his eyes on the ground.

They stood awkwardly in front of Roxas' house where the short one's feet had led them until he unlocked the door. _Mom and dad shouldn't be home yet. _

"Uh…you can come in if you want."

"You're lucky I'm not a serial killer or something you know," the other guy stepped inside with a laugh.

_It sounds like Sora's home though. _He could hear hushed voices coming from upstairs but he didn't bother trying to hear what they were saying. Or rather he didn't want to. So instead he headed for the living room and turned up the volume to let his brother know he was home.

"Do you…want anything to eat or drink?"

_I guess I should've thought of this through more…_

"What've you got? First I gotta call Marly though."

Roxas went to the kitchen to grab a pop and maybe a bag of chips if he could find one. _I think I saw one behind the soup…_ he dug around, pushing cans out of his way while teetering on his toes. _What? It's gone…? Sora probably ate them. Crap. _Before returning to the couch he grabbed a pop for Axel but stopped in his tracks.

"S-Sora?!"


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks for all the reviews, faves and alerts everyone! *wipes tear*

Chapter 4

"Why are you in your boxers?! P-People are over!"

Sora stood in front of Axel apparently observing the red head like he was some sort of animal, "what? It's not like I'm stealing your boyfriend or anything. What's your name anyway Mr. Tattoos?"

Axel laughed, "well, I don't know cutie, you might've just stolen my heart. The name's Axel, commit it to memory."

Roxas stared-_what exactly is going on? Is he hitting on my brother?! And he's not my boyfriend!_ He opened his mouth to snap his thoughts out loud but a smirk from Axel aimed at him stopped the cogs in his mind entirely. _When did he get so…hot? Wait, no. Stop that! This is just because he's chasing you. _

Apparently unaware of the effect he'd had on the blonde Axel went back to flirting quite openly with Sora.

"so, where do you go to school Sora?"

"Me? Twilight Town High. Which isn't preppy enough for Roxas," the brunette sprawled out on the couch crossing his feet on top of the coffee table.

"Oh yeah? So Roxy needs to loosen up a bit huh?"

"I like the way you think! Let's be friends!" Sora grinned and held out his hand which the other guy shook.

"I'm standing right here you know."

As if they hadn't even noticed both of the new friends gasped with mock surprise. Again Axel smiled, "what, are you jealous Roxy?"

"No, stupid."

"He is, look at how he blushes!" Sora commented with a grin. He had that look in his eye that made Roxas want to run the other way for fear of what he was planning.

"Shut up Sora!"

"Roxas is jealous Roxas is jealous!"

"Don't start too Axel!" he could've punched them both just to get rid of the eerily similar expressions on their faces.

"You're too cute. Roxas. Sorry Sora, it'd never have worked out between us."

"No, no stay away from me!" in a second the tall, skinny guy had grabbed him and practically lifted him off his feet. Sora cackled in a witch like manner then bounded upstairs only to return fully dressed.

"Let's go out on a double date! I'll call Riku!"

_But weren't you just upstairs with him?_ And then he was gone again still laughing like a mad man. Axel let him down and scratched his head, pink spreading beneath the two tattoos.

"Sorry, I went a bit overboard."

"Yeah. Now he thinks you're my boyfriend."

"…I know. Sorry."

Roxas blinked, "what's wrong with you?"

"Oh nothing, just tasting bitter rejection is all."

_That's…what the hell? He's so sensitive about it! Don't act all cool then go and be pathetic! _The short blonde stood awkwardly, waiting for something. His eyes scanned Axel's face and he could see the green ones across from him doing the same. He swallowed to try to moisten his dry mouth but it only brought attention to the affliction. Axel fingertips brushed his face and the breath that started to fill his lungs whooshed out. After one more whisper of a touch the tall teen leaned in.

"Oh! Lemme take a picture with my cellphone!" Sora flailed his arms about like an over excited fangirl.

They pulled back without so much as a touch of the lips. Roxas swung around and glared at his brother hard enough that the brunette actually fled the room. Only to poke his head around the corner with a smile.

"So, we still up for that date?"

~~**~~

True to his word Sora had called Riku who may as well have worn a sign that said 'Sora is mine. Do not touch or you will lose something vital'. Axel seemed to take the hint though and ignored Sora almost completely in favour of harassing Roxas. The foursome headed straight to the café in the heart of Tram Common. Both Riku and Sora knew the entire menu off by heart-_this must be their usual meeting place._ To his surprise Axel turned his nose up at the coffee instead ordering an apple juice. Roxas just got some long named latte. He could feel the silver haired teen's eyes on him but didn't bother looking up-they'd never really liked each other anyway.

"Tell me how you guys met!" Sora practically screeched.

Luckily no one else sat around them. A few artsy types sat in the dark corner opposite of their booth but they didn't even raise their heads. He had to hand it his brother, the place had a nice, quiet atmosphere. If one sat by the window the entire marketplace-and its inhabitants-could be seen but inside the coffee house had none of the outside nose. The smell of coffee too didn't overpower his nose and the cushions didn't make his back hurt like the ones in diners did.

"How we met? On the bus. Roxas falls asleep every day. Usually on me. Drools on my arm."

"I do not!"

"Oh yes you do Roxy. All over my shirts. That's why I wear a jacket now."

"Yeah, he does drool when he's sleeping. And snores too huh?" Sora banged his fist on the table killing himself laughing. Even Riku's lips twitched into a smile.

Roxas on the other hand chose to grumble to himself and ignore all of Axel's attempts to talk with him. Even when the waitress brought their order he kept his gaze on his coffee.

"Roxy, hey…don't be mad!"

"He's just pouting cause he knows it's true!"

"Shut up Sora."

He could see the pair across from them holding hands under the table-_Riku really does like him. It's really easy to see too. I kinda feel sorry for him._ For a faker Sora could mimic the adoration being directed at him remarkably well. While he sipped his drink Axel and Sora continued making jokes at Roxas' expense though the crimson haired teen kept glancing to him. _Probably afraid I'll kill him._

His phone rang and his heart started pounding. Axel and Sora were here with him so the only person who could be calling was…he pushed his 'boyfriend' out of the booth so he could run to the bathroom.

"Olette, hi."

"Roxas, where are you?" she sounded pissed.

"How could you even say anything she continued.

"How could you leave Namine like that?! She doesn't know the area and you abandon her?!"

_Oh yeah…that. _

"She's crazy! She started talking about all this stuff like we were supposed to be together because of past lives or something!" he whispered fiercely.

_Of course I feel bad about just leaving her but…_the girl sighed and he could see her twirling strands of hair around her fingers.

"Kairi…Kairi warned me about that but I didn't think…"

"What do you mean Kairi warned you?"

Olette's end abruptly went silent as she undoubtedly stepped into her bedroom, "she said back in Hollow Bastion they'd gone to see a…psychic who told Namine that in a past life she'd fallen in love with a blonde haired blue eyed boy. And that she's meet him after moving to a new place. I'm so sorry I-"

"It's not your fault. But she's crazy. I feel bad about it but…I'm not being some girl's fate or soul mate or whatever."

_I hate feeling trapped, she can't make me feel something for her when I don't. _he said nothing else though and Olette apologized again before sighing.

"I'm so sorry Roxas. I didn't want to believe something was up because I thought…if I helped her she'd be my friend."

"Olette I told you it's not your fault. I gotta get going. I'm out with Sora…"

"Oh, okay. Call me when you get home okay?"

"Yeah, I will."

He hung up and turned to examine himself in the framed mirror behind him. His blue eyes stared back at him, wide from what could have been nerves and his blonde spikes still in place. _Okay, so your friend set you up with a crazy chick and now you've got some guy you met on a bus trying to go out with you. No problem right? Oh yeah, and don't forget, you're still failing math. _He twisted the tap on with a faint squeak and let a pool form in his hands. The blonde had just splashed it into his face when the door swung open behind him.

"Are you coming back or should Axel just leave now?" Riku's low voice echoed through the 2 stall washroom.

"Yeah, I'm coming."

A towel found its way into his hand and then footsteps receded into nothing. Roxas wiped his face then headed back to the threesome. Sora grinned-Axel gave him a look reminiscent of an abandoned animal. The red eyebrows knitted together like two short, furry caterpillars.

"Sorry I took so long. Olette had something important…"

The tallest of the three waved his hand dismissively, "don't worry about it. Your coffee might be cold though."

He sat down again not missing the look Sora gave him. _Yeah, I know, I was gone for a long time. Thanks for clearing that up big brother. _But Axel had been right, his coffee had gone cold. And cold coffee tasted like crap.

~~**~~

He pulled the covers over his head with a groan. _I can't believe I failed another test. Mom's gonna kill me. _The test in question had a mark of a whole 30% on it Mr. Leonhart had written 'see me' which Roxas had chosen to ignore for the time being. This morning Axel hadn't been on the bus again which made him feel worse about three nights ago.

After the café they'd strolled back to the house-twilight really had fallen over Twilight Town and dyed everything hues of orange and yellow. He barely heard Sora's suggestion but did notice when they bypassed the house completely in favour of jumping on the town line to the other side of the city. Before he knew it they stood on top of Sunset Hill. Which was when Riku and Sora disappeared.

"You look a bit dazed Roxy," Axel commented, he stared out past the fence around the hill.

"Sorry."

The red head smiled, "you gonna tell me what's wrong or just sit here like a zombie?"

"Axel, I…I'm not really up to this. That girl I was out with before…she just put me in a bad mood."

"Oh. I shouldn't have dragged out with me."

_Why does he always make me feel bad? _He pulled up a few shoots of grass growing just beyond the fence idly. _This is awkward._

"Axel…sorry, I'm kind of a dick."

"No. Dammit, I don't know what to say to you, you know Roxas?" Axel murmured, "this is really a nice place. I'm surprised it's so deserted."

"Well, everyone here comes up here with dates all the time so…they think it's boring," he shrugged, "_I _don't."

"Maybe I should've asked this before but…how old are you?"

He froze-to lie or not to? For some reason he got a strong 'please be 18' vibe from the other guy. Finally, after studying a bit Roxas settled on the truth, "15."

"Shit. Shit shit shit! Oh fuck," Axel got to his feet, hands tearing their way through hair in a demonstration of the now electric atmosphere around them.

_I can't believe he's 22. How could I not tell?! How could __**he**__ not tell? This is just my luck. Maybe Namine was right. Maybe it is fate. _Roxas could have cried for all the bad luck he'd had lately. Of course the red head had left right away after that and he hadn't shown up on the bus since then. He'd slept through his bus stop thus missing the first part of homeroom which in turn gave him only 20 minutes to finish the test he'd subsequently failed.

But most of all, right at this minute he regretted telling Axel his real age. Maybe it had been fate that had made him say it. _No, that's all crap._ And the best part? He didn't even have Axel's phone number-only two of his friend's. _I doubt Demyx will tell it to me. And that other guy…yeah right. _Plus the other blonde hadn't picked up since he'd seen Roxas last. Not that it'd been a long but at this time he was ready to go crazy anyhow. Which was Olette came over.

Almost immediately she assessed the situation and pulled him into a hug. She smelled different-weird, girly, nice. He let her hold onto him because she remained the only person who didn't make him feel stupid for wanting to cry.

"Roxas, are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"We've been worried about. Hayner, Pence and I. This past week you've been acting really weird," she patted him on the back.

"I know. But it'll stop now. I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay. As long as you're fine."

"Thanks. How about we go get something for dinner. My mom and dad are working late tonight," he pulled away and smiled at her faintly.

The girl nodded, "we should bring some to Hayner. They still haven't let him out and all he does is complain about the food."

_Oh yeah. I almost forgot about Hayner…_if his guilt showed on his face it obviously wasn't too noticeable because Olette looked happier than she'd seen her for almost two weeks. The blonde let his hair stay in flattened disarray and after he grabbed his wallet they were out the door.

Dinner consisted only of a burger and some fries from the local diner but he didn't have to force his smile. Olette had accumulated quite the collection of gossip on teachers and students alike, no doubt from hanging around Kairi's group.

"You know Mr. Leonhart? Word is he's seeing someone tall and blonde with hair kind of like yours. And Rai and Fuu are apparently transferring to DIH next term with a couple others…I think Kairi said Sora and Riku were too! Oh, yeah! I forgot. Me and Pence…well…"

"You-you're going out?!"

Her face went redder than Axel's hair, "he asked me after lunch on Friday. Before everyone showed up."

"I'm happy for you. Pence has had a huge crush on you for a long time you know."

"I know. I was just too scared to ask him out," she dipped a French dry into ketchup then took a bite.

"Too scared to ask _Pence_ out? You're insane Olette."

"Hey! It's scary! Besides, we're such good friends I was afraid it would ruin our friendship," another fry disappeared into her mouth, "but I don't think that will happen."

"Good. Does Hayner know?"

She nodded, "mm hm. He hasn't left us alone either. Maybe he'll calm down now that you're…well, you're more aware."

_Yeah, I guess I was kind of…out of it. I can't remember anything we talked about at lunch at all._ He nodded-_Axel's gone so there's nothing to distract me now. Everything can go back to normal. _in one way he felt relieved but in a completely other he couldn't help thinking 'what if'. Of course he couldn't have hidden his age for very long and he didn't know why the thought had even crossed his mind. _I should've guessed he was way older than me. He ran off right so quickly. _He could imagine Hayner's thoughts on the matter easily 'I told you he's a creeper!'. _Which I guess is kind of true…I mean…why was he even hitting on me anyway?!_

"Roxas? Something the matter?"

"Uh…no. Nothing. Just spaced out I guess."

She smiled, "you think too much! Hayner doesn't hate you or anything."

"Oh. Good. I felt bad for not really visiting him…"

"Well, Namine and I have so it's okay!"

"I guess…" he poked at his remaining hamburger like it'd somehow contracted a disease and he couldn't touch it for more than 2 seconds. Olette didn't say anything about it despite staring at him.

"Don't worry okay? We could go see him now if you want."

For some reason he shook his head, "I'm not in the mood…and he'll probably want to fight or something."

The girl laughed, her hand rising to cover her mouth, "that's true! And the doctors probably wouldn't like that too much. Why don't you come over to my place then? We could watch a movie?"

"Yeah, okay…"

~~**~~

Axel hadn't so much as appeared for two weeks. Almost as if he'd dropped off the face of the planet entirely. Demyx didn't pick up either which pointed to a hypothesis that said the blonde had been told not to. Olette, not being oblivious like Hayner, asked him a totally of three times a day what had happened but Roxas had yet to tell her.

_But I'll fix this. I will. _Which was why he stood in front of the arcade at 12 noon on a Saturday when he could've slept in. For the past week he'd begged Hayner to teach him how to play a game, any game and finally the blonde had obliged. _It wasn't easy but…I'm gonna beat that asshole Zexion and move on in this stupid game Axel's playing. Whether he likes it or not._

Roxas stepped inside, eyes again needing time to adjust to the attack of neon and black lights. But he made a beeline to House of the Dead anyway. The high score champion gave him the briefest of glances before returning to the game.

"What do _you_ want kid?"

"My _name_ is Roxas."

"You know, Axel is not a pedophile. Even if you win he will not go out with you. Why even try?" Zexion shot a zombie right in the head, probably imagining it was Roxas.

"He's the one who made up this stupid thing and I'm gonna finish it. So get used to it."

The credits rolled and the short guy slid out of the booth, "the others will not play along you know. You will not even make it past me."

"Shut up. Or are you afraid I'll beat your score?"

"I am fairly confident that you will fail. 90% sure in fact."

_What are you, a calculator or something?_ He held the other's gaze then turned on his heel. _I'll beat you. _Roxas pushed past a few onlookers and moved to the game that would lead him to victory. Ms. Pacman.

_Okay, so I just ignore the people watching, insert the quarter then get ready. _He leaned in closer to read the high score board-_okay, so the lowest one is 10,250. I'll go for that one. _Sweat sprung up on his hands even though it was just a stupid game he was playing to move farther in another stupid game. His cellphone had been turned off, all his money reduced to quarters and he pulled everything Hayner had taught him to the front of his mind. _This will be a piece of cake._

He held the joystick, completely focused on the fame in front of him though he could've sworn he heard Eye of the Tiger playing somewhere. but that didn't faze him-no, he had to be completely one with the game. First life, gone. His hand quickly moved to his brow to wipe away the perspiration beading there.

"His score, it's over-"

"Don't say it!" someone called out.

"9 thousaaaaaand?!" another person finished for the first.

"What, 9 thousand?!"

_Oh my god they're all nerds. _He didn't expect any less of course but hearing kids older than him quote Dragon Ball Z gave him a funny feeling. Kind of like he wanted to be sick. _No, focus. You're almost there. _2nd life gone.

"Oh you're gonna lose! Told you there was no way you'd beat Zexion."

"Shut up, all of you," the guy being spoken of said above the crowd.

And they did. _Creepy…_his lackeys now quiet Zexion approached, his hand resting above the play screen. Roxas felt his body tense but continued anyway. Last life gone. He sunk to the floor letting his arms hang limply at his sides. _Ow, my eyes…I failed. And I tried so hard. All that time Hayner spent training me…_

"Well, you lost. And you did not beat my score."

"I know."

"Come back when you are better," it sounded nice but the tone sounded grudging-like giving him another chance was obligatory.

"Tell Axel that he's not getting away."

"Oh? Are you going to force yourself on him?" Zexion's eyes flashed as if they were made of metal. _I should be scared I think. _

"He's the one who hit on me."

Roxas had about three seconds to move though he didn't do anything and got a whack across the head with something hard. He toppled over then glared up at the other teen. His head throbbed but he put a hand to the afflicted spot and just felt a bruise.

"What's your problem?!"

"_You_ are the kind of person I dislike most. You think you can get whatever you want even if you do _not _ desire it. The fact of the matter is-you do not deserve Axel," a binder was clutched to the steel haired guy's chest. He looked down on Roxas, a dangerous feeling aura emanating from his body.

"That's not for you to say asshole!"

Zexion took a few shaking breaths, "get out of here before I hit you again."

"This doesn't belong to you."

The owner of the arcade strode over waving her arms, "hey hey hey! No fighting in here outside of the games!"

"I am sorry Yuffie. I got out of hand."

"Darn right. Break it up you guys or I'll have to take down your names."

"Sorry," Roxas got to his feet and brushed off his clothes.

He glared out Zexion then pushed through the gaggle of people that had gathered around them. _I can believe he hit me with a binder. Who does that?!_ The blonde touched the bump on his head gingerly as he stood in line for Wendy's. _He's so obsessive. What's with people?! First Namine and now him…_

The teen froze. _Someone is-_

"Hey dude. Heard Zex let you have it man."

With the black vest, dress pants and white button down shirt Xigbar almost looked professional. Minus the long hair and eyepatch.

"Hi Xigbar."

"Harsh! Don't be so enthused."

"He hit me with a book," Roxas grumbled.

"Tends to do that, yeah. What'd you do anyway little dude?"

His eyes twitched, "I'm _not_ little. Just give me a burger. I tried to beat his scores."

He handed over his money to the cashier then turned to Xigbar.

"Little to me. He's kinda emo. Always bitching about something," the security guard nodded.

"…I thought you were friends."

"Not really Roxy, he's Demy's friend so I gotta put up with the dude, you know?"

"Thanks," Roxas took his tray of food, "don't call me Roxy."

"Huh? Well, Demy does so figured it was okay. Whatever. Oh man, there's my boss. Later."

A blonde woman leaned over the railing on the second floor, "Xigbar you shithead! Get back to work!"

"Roger, Larxy!" the black haired man saluted, "…bitch…"

They went in opposite directions as Roxas went to eat his food and Xigbar to work. He managed to find an empty table by some miracle. Roxas sighed-_how am I gonna win? Huh? Is that Mr. Leonhart? Who's that with him?_ The person in question had light coloured spikes more extreme than Roxas' and wore a dark vest over blue jeans. The strange man stood almost as tall as Mr. Leonhart but short enough that he had to look slightly up. _Is that who Olette told me about?"_

Roxas didn't bother going over or thinking too hard on it like Hayner probably would've. _he'd probably think they were going out of something. _He bit into his burger and chewed slowly. _I'll have to get Hayner to train me some more….I wonder what Axel's doing. He probably already knows I was here. How did Xigbar find out about Zexion so quick anyway? _He could have pondered the question for the entire day-or at least until a plausible explanation came up but a phone call interrupted his thoughts as always.

"Hey Roxy!"

"Demyx...?What is it?"

"I just wanted to call since I haven't talked to you in awhile!" the hyperactive guy exclaimed loudly. He could hear people talking in the background.

"Didn't Axel tell you not to talk to me?"

"Hm? Nope! Should he have? Oh what'd you do Roxy?!"

"Apparently I'm too young to talk to him or something," Roxas muttered.

"Oh! He did say you were only a kid! But I've got nieces and nephews so it's a-okay!" Demyx's voice faded for a minute while he presumably spoke to someone else.

"I'm not a kid."

"Alrighty. Hey, you wanna talk to him? Yell really loud at him!"

_What would I even want to talk to Axel? _The blonde stared at his remaining meal-suddenly it looked repulsive to him. Before he could say no though the phone had already been handed over.

All the background noise cut out. His stomach felt like he'd just gone on a rollercoaster-he took a few deep breaths.

"Hey."

"Hi," the teen murmured.

* * *

Urgh. So much dialogue! This chapter is kinda shit. I don't really like it. Actually this is about 98% of the stuff I have written out. I haven't had time to write this ^^; I also kinda hit a roadblock! But I think I've got back on track now. I didn't want this chapter to go on for another 18 pages so I shortened it by cutting it off before the written chapter was finished :) I'm actually pretty surprised that I've been updating every week-I'm not usually the type to do that! Next update might be a bit slower though, sorry! Also, try not to hate Namine too much, it's not her fault. She's just trying to find her 'prince charming' and got a bit…crazy about it. Ha ha. She will be showing up in other chapters though and will have a pairing! Also, PencexOlette is cute at hell! But I just like Olette in general XD I'm getting pissed off with Axel and Roxas because every time I put them in a situation that could lead to good times they manage to get out of it! :/


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"So…how's it goin'?"

"Fine."

"Good."

Axel sighed, "listen Roxas."

"Why should I?"

"Then don't. Roxas this is my last chance alright? This isn't a movie, got it memorized? If we do _anything_ and someone finds out I go to jail, not you. I've got a shit school record-I'm lucky I even got into Destiny College. Jail…I can't do it," the red head whispered, "not even for you."

_Then why didn't you ask how old I was to begin with?! _He clenched his cellphone tightly in his hand, "then don't talk to me anymore."

"…I tried. But I've had your number punched in ever since I got home last Sunday."

"Then what the hell do you want from me!?" Roxas snapped. His face flushed from anger and he thought of tracking Axel down and punching him in the face. Only it would be impossible to find out where the red head was. _And I probably would end up just staring at him. _

"I don't know. Please, just let me see you and I'll shut up and leave you alone."

"Don't bother."

"Fine. Take care of yourself then. Try not to fall asleep on the bus," the line went dead.

He rested his head in his arms. _What is he trying to do? Doesn't want to see me, wants to see me. Doesn't call me now he's talking on the phone. What the hell?_ Roxas wanted to kick himself-_I don't even know why I talked to him. It was stupid. Dammit._ On one hand he wanted to call Axel back and say 'tell me when you want to meet' but on another he wanted to get as far as possible from the red head. Only things kept happening that brought him closer to seeing him again either by his own doing or otherwise.

_Why am I doing this?_ The blonde sat up and left his garbage on the table for once. He just wanted to go home, turn out all the lights and lie down. He _didn't_ want to see Axel on the bus, see Namine, or think about his math grade. But with his luck all three would be happening in short order.

So he hopped on the bus, then the train and unlocked the front door. For now no one was home. Which struck him as slightly unusual but he ignored it. The house was empty so when he turned on his stereo no one yelled at him to shut it off. He could two step in peace. Which he did until his entire body screamed for him to stop being so stupid and sit down. _Tired. And thirsty. _ He jogged downstairs, reaching the kitchen just as his parents walked through the door. They didn't look happy.

It didn't take long for him to spot the paper waving in the breeze, "Roxas, what is _this_?"

"Looks like a test."

"Don't be smart."

If I was I would've passed probably. He took a swig of water from the tap, "it was a hard test. I'm bad at math."

"I thought Olette was tutoring you?"

"She is. But she's got stuff to do too so…besides, she's good at this stuff, it's different for her," he murmured.

"Well then you get extra help at school. Pull this mark up or you can forget about the Struggle tournament this summer."

_That's not even fair! The tournament is so far away so how does it even matter?! _But he nodded, "yeah, I'll try harder mom."

"Good. Now, where did Sora get to this time?"

_I don't know. Probably with Riku. _He shrugged, "I don't know."

"You know he asked to transfer to your school."

Roxas nodded, gulping down his drink, "Olette told me."

"How is Olette?"

"Fine, I guess."

"You know, you should have her over for dinner sometime this week," his mom, who had apparently gotten over her bought of rage commented.

_Uh…__**why**__? _He shrugged again then made a dash for the stairs. _I know hwere this is going. Last time it was so awkward because of you._ The blonde returned to the relative safety of his bedroom and turned off the stereo. He had a lab to do tonight-luckily for him all his friends either had homework or were too busy being a couple to distract him. _I'm I'm not careful I'll fail bio too and then mom __**and**__ will kill me._ Unfortunately one scene kept replaying in his mind. The one that involved trains, red heads and licking. _Stupid Axel._ But at least he could write properly again after having his stitches removed. Which meant no more writing that looked like stick figure puke and less looks of unending pity from his classmates. Though the scab on his face didn't help. _That idiot Xigbar._

Idiots aside his report wouldn't get done on its own so he cleared his mind of everything but biology down to work

~~**~~

"You were late for homeroom again Roxas. Are you feeling alright?"

_That question is getting a bit…annoying. _He shovelled his sandwich into his mouth in a display of epically bad manners. Everyone but Namine and Kairi looked nothing short of accepting. _Like I eat like this every day guys, thanks. _

"I'm _fine_. I just fell asleep on the bus again."

"You need an alarm or something Roxas. Maybe one that's built into your brain," Hayner slammed his fist down on the table, "that's a great idea!"

"Yeah, it's called your inner clock. And I'm not that bad. It's only a couple minutes."

"Yesterday you missed half the class! Keep it up and Mr. Leonhart will give you detention," Olette nodded, "I could call you from school if you want."

_We already tried that…_ "It wouldn't wake me up anyway."

"Maybe you could catch the early train Roxas. It's really fast," Pence suggested, he glanced at Olette, "that's the one we take."

"Yeah, that's cause you guys are crazy, right Roxas?" Hayner elbowed him in the side a couple times.

"It's way too early. I already wake up at 6am."

"Why don't you get a ride?" Kairi cocked her head, "our parents drive us every morning."

"Mom and dad don't have a car. Olette's the only one in Twilight Town that does."

_And her dad doesn't even drive her. Maybe I should get an alarm clock. How'd I stop myself from missing my stop before Axel? Oh yeah, I slept the night before. _He must have glared pretty hard in the randomly chosen direction because a second later the guy who just happened to step into his line of sight burst into tears on the spot. Hayner stared at him for a second then laughed, slapping the other blonde on the back.

"Holy crap! Roxas is like a superhero! With just one look he'll make you cry!"

"Shut up Hayner."

~~**~~

"Okay. Class, I want you to tell me what you think of the book I told you to read."

Everyone looked at each other finding the same panic etched in their classmate's faces as their own. Roxas had personally read some summaries on the internet. He didn't put up his hand due to the fact that all he would end up saying is "I liked/hated it". Which he didn't figure Mr. Sid wanted. At all. So the class stared blankly at their teachers who promptly went off on a rant about how they all had to do their reading or they'd all fail. For some reason his cellphone went off in the middle of said rant.

"I-Sorry Sir I must have forgotten to turn it off," he tried to look sorry but being focused on his phone screen didn't lend well to the image. His ringtone sounded again and the blonde opted just to step out of the classroom. Of course it was Demyx. Of course.

"I'm in class!"

"Huh? So early? Woah!"

Roxas narrowed his eyes, "it's 12 in the afternoon. What do you want anyway?"

"Oh…well…I dunno."

"You're not going to make me talk to Axel again are you?" he didn't know if he wanted to.

"Huh? Nope. Axel said he's not gonna talk to you ever again."

_Oh. Why does that sound so…bad? No, I should be happy. _Roxas rubbed at his eyes-they'd gotten really itchy all of a sudden.

"Roxas? He said that's how you wanted it."

"Yeah. Yeah, that's right."

"Well okay! I guess you should get back to class, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

He hung up. And it felt so final.

~~**~~

"There, told him. Hey, you don't look happy!" Demyx exclaimed loudly. He grabbed the locks of hair on either side of the other guy's face and pulled, "Axel, you don't look happy."

"That's because I'm not you idiot."

"But…_you_ told me what to say!" the blonde put a finger to his lips.

"Just shut up."

"Are you gonna cry~? Wanna hug?" the music student held open his arms but Axel just glared and vacated the blonde's bed immediately. _I guess he really doesn't want a hug! _

The red head flipped open his laptop and prepared for the five minute boot up by grabbing an energy drink stacked beside the bed. _Of course I had to cut the kid loose. I'm way older than him. Shit, how'd I miss it? _He took a swig of his Red Bull then let his head fall back against the wall behind him. Demyx's side of the room showed almost no paint at all because of the pictures and posters plastered to the walls. Of the Sitar player and Xigbar mostly. Axel's own felt woefully bare with its single Bond of Flames poster and one picture of him and Demyx. He pushed back his hair with a hand only to have it bounce back into his face. He typed in a website then messaged half of the list of people on it. All half acquaintances or friends of friends but he knew they'd reply anyway.

"Hey, who wants to go out drinkin' tonight?"

~~**~~

"So what'd you get on that gym evaluation from last week?"

He stared at the ceiling, counting the holes from when he and Sora had thrown things in the air, "about 75%."

"Man, really? I only got a 60!"

_Yeah, well you only did 2 lay ups before quitting. _

"If gym was just Struggles you'd probably be getting 100s."

Hayner chucked his pencil over at him, "shut up! Hey, let's go practice. Bet I beat you!"

_I bet you'll beat me too. I haven't Struggled in weeks. Not for lack of trying on Hayner's part. _He got to his feet though and nodded. His Struggle bat lay against the wall beside his desk. But his friend grabbed it before he could.

"Ha, guess it's the stick for you Roxas."

He shrugged then they made their way outside. _Br…it's getting cold already. I should've worn something warmer. _The other blonde tapped his foot and looked at an imaginary watch.

"So how long you just gonna stand there spaced out for huh?"

"Oh. Sorry."

His eyes scanned the ground for something to use against the bat. He shivered but found a stick after a bit of walking. Hayner yelled something about Sandlot then took off. _I guess that's where we're meeting._

When he got their Hayner had already started yelling at Seifer despite Roxas only being half a minute at most behind him. The two guys stood toe to toe literally-and yelled their lungs hoarse over who had the right to use the empty space. _Oh yeah, I still have to tell Hayner about Seifer beating up the kids who jumped him. _Rai and Fuu stood idly by, content with just looking menacingWell, Rai spouted some nonsense about how they'd mess Hayner up, y'know?!'. Roxas held his position beside his friend until Seifer glared at them all.

"Let me deal with this loser," the disciplinary squad leader smirked then jabbed Hayner in the chest with his Struggle bat.

"LEAVE," Fuu pointed.

"I'm not going unless you do."

"We are, y'know!"

Regardless of how much of a tool he felt like he went off with the two other kids since his friend didn't even look at him due to being too busy trash talking with Seifer. The silver haired girl smacked Rai upside the head, "STOP."

"I wanna see what they're talkin' about y'know!"

She punched him again, "NOSEY."

_How are those two friends still? _He sat on the stoof of someone's house with a sigh. The others continued squabbling-somehow, despite Fuu's mono-syllabic answers. _I can't imagine them at DHI. I wonder why Sora's transferring. He's been out so much I've barely seen him since Axel…_

"I heard you guys are transferring to DHI next semester…?" it was probably best just to try and make conversation, right?

"Correct."

"Our 'rents think it's safer, y'know?"

_Sora did tell me about all the people who get beat up there. Which is why Seifer and his gang are around. _

"Roxas! Let's get the hell out of here!" Hayner stomped past them, fists clenched at his sides. He didn't half to be told twice and jogged to catch up. The other teen didn't look over even when the two drew even. Despite the barely there height difference Hayner managed to outstrip Roxas by a mile and only came to a stop when they reached the Usual Spot. Even then the other boy paced back and forth visibly fuming at something.

"Calm down, Hayner."

"He-that asshole! Those guys that beat me up-Seifer already got them back! Does he know how that looks!? I bet he does!" the angry teenager snarled and threw the bat still clenched in his hand away from him.

"Maybe he wants to be friends?"

"I don't want anything to do with that punk!" he plunked down on the couch. Roxas hovered uncertainly on the other side of it.

"It's not like he called you a wimp."

"By getting rid of them he did! Sometimes you're so damn clueless Roxas," most of his anger apparently gone he threw his arm around the shorter kid, "you'll never get a girl like that."

_Good…_he kept his gaze trained on the floor, "I guess…"

"I heard about Namine. Crazy chick."

Roxas nodded. _Next thing __**you'll**__ be trying to set me up with girls too._ He shuddered at the thought-the last girlfriend Hayner'd had was a girl 3 times taller than him and who stole things and kept saying 'or something or nothing'. _How did he even understand her? _But he didn't say thar right now because Hayner would probably beat him within an inch of his life. Which on the best of days didn't fall into the 'good times' column.

"Did she like…totally want in your pants or something?"

"I don't know, jeez," he had to laugh at that-_next thing he'll probably say is…_

"If yeah then why would you give that up? The clocks ticking Roxas. You don't wanna be a 40 year old virgin, do you?"

The smaller blonde rolled his eyes, "we're only in 10th grade. And why would I want it from a crazy girl?"

_And I'm not a virgin. You just don't know about that. _He hadn't told any of his friends-or even Sora about that though. _It's not like I'm sleeping around all the time but…_He couldn't honestly say he remembered any of the people's names. _One was a girl though…right_? He sighed-_what does it matter anyway?_

"Oh yeah, that reminds me! I beat that cocky kid's score."

"How does that remind you?"

The other teen shrugged, "shut up, it just does."

_Yeah, whatever. But he beat Zexion so…I guess it is possible._

"On which game?"

"Huh? Oh, Mortal Kombat. Wasn't so tough! I bet he's crap at fighters since the score was so low," he could see Hayner's chest practically puff out from pride.

"I was 100 points off."

_Until that annoying emo came over and tried looking like he was the coolest guy in existence. And hit me with a __**book**__. _His hand wentto the bump instinctively. Even after he'd put ice on it right when he got home it'd managed to grow to the side of half a ping pong ball. _Luckily mom hasn't noticed yet thanks to Olette putting cover up on it._

"Don't worry, I played under your name. What's going on anyway? You never wanted to play SC with me and Pence before."

Roxas fingered the key around the neck, "it's…kind of a game. He's like a boss I gotta beat to move on."

"Sweet! Hey, can I play too?"

"Uh…it's just one player for now until…"

"Aw man. Too bad. That sounds really cool! Tell me if you need any more help!" the blonde slapped him on the back with a grin.

_Somehow I think you've already played your part._

~~**~~

Zexion had given him the number with a visible scowl. He accused Roxas of cheating but other than him not being there to witness it no one could say it _wasn't_ Roxas who'd logged the high score. So, phone number in hand the teen made his way home, a wide smile on his face. Even more disturbing was the fact that he hummed a tune-_all this for a number? I really am pathetic._ Not to mention he'd already told Axel not to talk to him yet continued playing anyway. _He had his chance to chase me. Now he's gotta sit and wait. _When he passed by the item shop he waved to the owner causing half the marketplace to turn, stare and wave back. _Oh yeah, small town. I guess that was a bit confusing…_ Roxas jogged to his house and opened the door. After kicking off his shoes the blonde slipped on a pair of slippers-his mom insisted on them now that it'd started getting cold.

Upstairs Sora was playing his crappy pop music but Roxas let it slide this time and headed to the kitchen for a snack. He grabbed a vanilla chocolate swirl pudding from the fridge then a cup of milk. _Mom should be home soon. Good thing she doesn't know I skipped study hall to go to the arcade. _Other than the music the house was pretty much uiet at least until he reached the living room. And saw the unmistakable red haired Axel sitting on his couch sipping from a can of coke.

* * *

Yes, apparently Roxas two steps. Maybe him and Zexion can get together for an emo convention, I don't know ha ha. And no, there will be no "omgs, like…Axel are so sad now he be an alcoholic" shit in this fic! XD He's just tryin' to go out and have some fun and forget about Roxy U_U Good luck Axel. GOOD. LUCK. Oh yeah, the girl Roxas is describing as Hayner's last girlfriend is Vicky Pollard a character from the tv show Little Britain(which is really funny). She's hilarious. And also played by a man I think! XD Sorry for my insufferable cliffhangers but I really do like them ^^; Next chapter I'll try to make it not a cliffhanger U_U I'll try. But no guarantees. Ha ha


	6. Chapter 6

Sorry for the lack of updates. It was hell week at University. Last week of classes so all the proffs were assigning essays like CRAZY. Thanks again for all the reviews and favourites, etc!

Chapter 6

He nearly backed out but his mind ended up telling him to scream the other guy's name as if being murdered. Which he did.

"AXEL! What are you doing here?!"

"Roxas, what are you shrieking about now? And I told you that pudding is for dessert!"

He turned looking back and forth between his mom and Axel until he got dizzy. Which was when his pudding got stolen. The woman then had the gall to give it to the intruder. _You said it was for dessert!_

"Here, have some pudding ."

"That's alright ma'am, I ate before I came."

"Eat it."

"Okay."

_Asshole. You come into my house, steal my food and call my mom 'ma'am'. _He glared. _You'll pay._

"Why is there a freak in our house?" Roxas crossed one arm over his chest, holding his drink with the other. He used his super powers, hoping the red head would burst into tears. But he seemed not to notice.

"Don't be so rude Roxas. The freak wouldn't be here if you hadn't failed so many tests."

"What's that got to do with anything?!" he yelled. It produced a strange effect when combined with Sora's stupid sugary songs.

"You need a tutor. And this charming young man is going to be that person."

_I'll probably fail even worse now. Even if he is wearing glasses to make himself look smarter. And hotter. Dammit. _Roxas averted his eyes to stare at the wall behind the TV so he could count the wires.

"Now, do you have any homework Roxas?" she looked so damned pleased with herself.

"No."

"Then you can do practice equations. Like the ones your math teacher gave me!"

He could have killed her. Except he needed her to cook for him. the other guy's lips twitched into a half smile. At that moment his mom left the room leaving the two of them to stare at each other.

"So, you're failing math, huh?"

Roxas drank his milk instead of answering.

"Listen, I didn't even know it was your mom when she called. I didn't do this intentionally."

_Yeah right. _He put down his glass with a clunk.

"I'll tell her no if you want."

"Whatever."

"Roxas-"

"Here they are! Why don't you two go upstairs and do a few," she handed over a stack of papers that easily could've weighed a metric tonne. Playing the part of good teacher Axel adjusted his glasses and nodded.

"Alright, let's get down to it Roxas."

"Call me Mr. Tanaka, Mr. Yagami," he said.

His mom just sighed and went back to the kitchen. The two walked up the stairs in utter silence though if he had wanted to he would've given the red head a very loud talking to about how you didn't just hit on someone then decide they were too young for you and try to cut all ties completely even if the person in question _acted_ really stupid. Only he didn't and yelled for Sora to turn down his music instead. _I'm not making this easy for you Axel. _

After his detour to Sora's room to argue his case as to why he needed mostly silence he made it to his room where the other guy already sat at Roxas' desk with his jacket discarded on the back of the chair. The blonde closed the door making sure to glare pointedly at his so called tutor. Who scratched the back of his neck and kept his eyes on the papers in front of him. _So now you're not even gonna look at me. Asshole!_

"We should get started on these."

"Why are you here?"

"College doesn't pay for itself. It just so happened that your mom was the first person to call," Axel murmured.

"What are you saying, it was fate?"

"More like luck. Roxas, I told you before…I'm sorry. Unless you want me to leave I'll teach you. Mr. Tanaka."

He narrowed his eyes, "you're not getting away."

Axel smirked. Almost immediately the blonde's face went pink-_why does he look so hot when he smiles that way? _He coughed.

"So why don't you tell me what's giving you trouble."

"Uh…Trig and stuff like that. I can't really remember all the formulas…"

"You haven't been doing your homework," the man didn't ask-he stated a fact.

"It's your fault. Your stupid game…"

Axel stared down at the papers, "if you wanted to see me you could've just said so, Mr. Tanaka."

_I could've. But I didn't. Because I'm so stupid and you are too! You're the one who said you didn't want…_ He nodded and studied the list of formulas in front of him-how could _anyone_ remember them all? The teen sighed.

"Okay, so you get Pythagorean theorem right?"

"Yeah. Just…Cosine and stuff…"

"I don't blame you. I failed twice before I finally got it. You have a scientific calculator?" his fingertips happened to brush Roxas' when he gestured in typical Axel fashion. They glanced at each other then lowered their eyes. Roxas bent over to the side to dig through his backpack.

"Yeah, I have one."

"This thing can pretty much do everything for you. All you have to do is remember when to use each."

"Yeah, right," he let his chin fall into his hand. Why did everyone he talked to say the same thing? _It wouldn't be a problem if I could actually remember stuff like that._

Axel seemed to pick up on his frustration and changed gears.

"Okay, so what do you really like?"

He shrugged, keeping his gaze on the work in front of him. The red head touched his shoulder briefly before quickly pulling his hand away.

"Hey, Roxas. It's alright if you can't do it right now. I'm here to teach you, got it memorized?"

"No it isn't! Mom says if I fail I can't do the Struggle Tournament this year! Olette already tried making me get it but I'm too stupid okay?" he clenched his fists in his lap-_why am I acting like an idiot in front of him. _

A laugh echoed through the room, "yeah, right. If you're stupid for not getting 10th grade math then I'm pretty sure about 98% of the world is too. What's a Struggle Tournament anyway?"

His angst temporarily suspended itself to make way for disbelief. _You don't know what Struggle is?! _He gaped at the man, "you know…_Struggle."_

"Enlighten me oh wise one," the smirk returned and the black outlined eyes narrowed, a glint flashing through the emerald irises. _That looks really scary. What's he thinking of?_

Roxas launched off into a close to 20 minute description of the inner workings of Struggle Tournaments, how Hayner had taught him and the story about how they'd finished 1st and 2nd last year. Through it the college student nodded and asked questions in all the right places. The blonde took that opportunity to stand up and demonstrate the different techniques with his bat almost knocking things off his shelves in his eagerness to show off.

"So that's Struggle huh? Hitting other people with bats…sounds pretty fun."

"I could teach you!"

_Why'd I yell?! I'm acting so stupid, what the…_ at that an even wickeder grin spread across Axel's face.

"I'll make you a deal. You finish these ten equations and you teach me for ten minutes."

"That'll take forever! Asshole," he stood boring holes in the taller one's head with his eyes with his arms crossed. _What are you, my mom? Making a deal? This is stupid. _

"Now now Roxy, don't pout."

"I'm _not._"

"Are so."

"I'm not!"

"Look, it's got even worse," Axel pointed, adjusting his glasses with a finger.

"I'm gonna kill you!" he smacked the hand pointing at him away and plunked down in his chair. _Stupid asshole. _The teen had a staring contest with the homework in front of him before to his tutor in a huff, "stop treating me like a kid."

"What do you suggest then Roxas? Pretend you're _not_ a 15 year old kid and have my way with you?" the red head whispered. Green met blue for a second before Axel's gaze dropped.

_Stop looking away from me! I'm not that young! I'm not a kid. _ He picked up his pencil with a quiet sigh and went to work. _Am I totally crazy or can we make this work? And why doesn't he want to? It's not like I'd go around telling everyone! _But he would want to tell _someone_-keeping completely quiet was impossible wasn't it? _Stupid Axel. Why does he always do this to me?! _

Their shoulders collided when his tutor put his finger to the page, "you're doing it right you know."

_Oh._ a smile flickered across his face. _But why can I remember now and not any other time? It's not like I can bring Axel with me to school. _One of the man's hands moved to the blonde spikes and messed them up.

"My ability is +15 intelligence."

"W-What?"

"Sorry, WoW joke. Luxord and Zexy are obsessed with that stupid game."

_Then why are __**you**__ making jokes about it? _He raised an eyebrow which Axel caught.

"Don't make faces like that, might get stuck that way."

"Yeah, right. I'll remember that _mom_," Roxas rolled his eyes.

At least things had kind of adjusted themselves to normal people's conversations rather than overly dramatic soap opera scripts. Axel, in all his wild gesturing flory, talked about how much college sucked and started giving pointers about applications even though the teen wouldn't need to be utilizing that information for a good 3 years. He had no clue what the older student was talking about of course but he kept his eyes level with the rims of Axel's glasses, soaking up all the words he could. _He's a good speaker. Like he always knows what he's talking about. _ Roxas smiled-the rest of his homework all but forgotten at the moment. It was when Axel stopped to take a breather that he tried getting in on the conversation.

"Did you hear Bond of Flames' new song yet?"

Two hands slammed down on the desk," NO! Have you!? Is it totally awesome Roxas tell it to me straight!"

_Is he just as crazy of a fanboy as me?! _ The smaller of the two nodded, "yeah! I managed to find a crappy quality rip on the internet a day after it came out. You wanna hear it?! I still have to buy the single though."

"Is the freakin' Pope Catholic? HELL YES!"

The pair bounded down the stairs like a herd of wildebeest to the basement/recreation room where the computer and the other miscellaneous crap was.

"Why do you have a treadmill down here? Keeping up your girlish figure Roxy?"

"Shut up! It's my mom's!" _…I do use it though. _ He switched on the power cord then the power tower. They flung themselves down on the ratty couch only to sit in utter silence. _Okay…now that we're down here it's kind of…awkward. _The rec room held all of the not so dignified(according to his mom) things like the pool table and laundry room. he and Sora had painted it a light shade of blue-Sora's idea-but the paint had started flaking off since it wasn't the right kind for the walls. A carpet had been put down so the floor didn't get unbearably cold but neither was it spectacularly warm either-even during the summer due to it being underground and having no real windows to speak of.

"You have a pool table? For all those poker nights am I right?"

"Yeah, actually. Except my mom only lets us bet with Pokemon hit counters because she 'doesn't want an illegal gambling ring to start'," he pulled on the bottom of his tie. _Why didn't I change out of my stupid uniform?! _

Axel burst out laughing-which sounded this time like a dying cat-and clapped his hands, "that is…so awesome, got it memorized?"

"No it isn't! She makes it sound like we're international drug lords with millions to spend!"

Which only made the red head laugh harder as he leaned on Roxas for support, "I-I love your mom! Seriously, if you want to bet on _anything_ I'll call up Luxord. That guy's _obsessed_ with gambling."

His entire right side tingled from the contact that Axel hadn't noticed happening yet. He neglected to notice it himself-completely by accident of course. _For someone so crazy about not going to jail he sure doesn't act like it._ Not that he was complaining-the tall guy made him want to talk and didn't make him feel completely stupid for freaking out over 'stupid emo bands' as Hayner called them. _And he has a really nice smile._

"Hey, Roxas. You don't care that I'm tutoring you right?"

He shook his head, "no. Should I? You're acting weird."

"_I'm_ acting weird? _You_'re the one who uses a treadmill."

"What the hell Axel!?" he punched him in the leg, "it's my _mom's_!"

"Sure. And Demyx is actually a certified genius," a retaliation punch hit the blonde in the side of his knee.

Their attacks got steadily more violent until hair pulling got involved. Which turned out to be a very effective way of getting the red head from moving. At present Roxas had a distful of crimson while hovering just above the college student's thighs.

"What are you boys doing down there?! That doesn't sound like homework Roxas!"

"I'm done mom! Ow!"

"This kind of got out of hand quickly! It's like a crappy chick flick. Oh! Computer's booted up!"

Momentarily forgetting about his position of power-which he immediately kicked himself for-Roxas headed over to the computer desk.

"Okay come here."

"Your wish is my command."

_I don't think so. _ They sat huddled around the monitor and crappy speakers, each focused on just listening. The singer's screaming vocals along with the harsh guitar made him think of something sharp and pointy. Kind of like Axel's hair except other than the copious amounts of gel the red spires had proved to be quite soft under her fingers. His face flushed for a second until he willed the thought away. _I can say it's from the cold. I'm not embarrassed at all._

"Oh man, that was _awesome_!"

"I know! I was so excited when it came out!"

"I definitely have to go buy this one!" Axel grinned.

"Yeah, me too! We should go this weekend," he slipped the suggestion in at the end hoping that the excitement over the CD would overshadow his request.

"This weekend? Dammit. I've got work. What about Thursday?"

"Thursday…okay. How many days a week are you here?" Roxas spun around on the chair so they were face to face again.

"Depends. Your mom suggested 2. Probably Monday and Thursday. Don't know yet, but call me if you need anymore help."

He nodded. When Axel got to his feet he had half a mind to grab him and bodily hold him here by whatever means necessary. Only he didn't. For now he followed him upstairs to where his mom sat in the living room drinking her daily dose of green tea.

"Thanks for your time Mrs. Tanaka, Roxas is a smart kid."

_Don't go back to that 'yes ma'am', 'no ma'am' crap! And don't call me a kid. _His mom seemed to adore the act though-or she just had visions of running off with a college boy-because she smiled. For once.

"You don't want to stay for dinner Mr. Yagami?"

"No ma'am, I've got a lot of homework to do actually…"

"Well next time you'll have to. Have a safe ride home."

"See you later Roxas. Don't worry about trig-practice makes perfect."

They walked to the front door where the two stood avoiding looking at each other and trying to grasp for words to speak. Axel scratched his head-_is that a nervous habit or something?_ The blonde sighed.

"Thanks. I think I'll be able to do that stuff now."

"Good. It's just hard to remember when people are remember right when they ask."

"Yeah."

"Don't look like that Roxas," he placed a hand on the teen's shoulder though it kept pulling back then returning to place. _It's not like the cops will appear out of nowhere and lock you up for putting your hand on my shoulder. _

"I hate you so much Axel…"

"It's probably better that way."

_Says you. _The green eyed stupid stepped back and shoved his feet into the boots by the door, "I'll see you Thursday."

_What's the point? Other than getting the CD. _He closed the door behind the visitor and promptly returned to his room. _Stupid Axel. Stupid stupid stupid Axel. _The blonde ground his teeth and wiped his eyes with the back of his knuckles. It wasn't long before he found his way to Sora's room. like Olette his brother didn't feel the need to act cool or ask what had happened, he just let Roxas talk(though through the crying he likely made no sense) then used comforting gestures where applicable. Which was how he ended up sleeping in Sora's bed amongst the stuffed animals with his head in his brother's chest like they'd slept when they were kids.

~~**~~

The next morning he was woken up by Riku standing over them both. Roxas jolted upright, blinking blearily and wondering what the hell his brother's sexy(but very annoyingly emo) boyfriend was doing in his room. until Sora groaned beside him and he remembered that actually, this wasn't his room. _I don't have pictures of Utada Hikaru and BoA all over my walls. Unless Sora snuck into my room and put them up…_

"Riku!" Roxas got pushed unceremoniously to the floor so his brother could lean over and give the silver haired teen a peck on the lips, "tastes like…you had pancakes for breakfast!"

"Your mom forced them on me."

"Pancake rape!"

From his vantage point on the floor he could see Riku's raise and a smile crack his face, "don't be such a goof. Come on, we're gonna be late."

"I'll race you to school!"

"Get ready to lose."

_They're so…disgusting. _The pair then proceeded to grope each other in a wholly inappropriate manner. _They're like a bad, gay Disney movie._ Before long though Riku broke away sending a glare at Roxas for his mere presence and started going through Sora's dresser and throwing clothes at the brunette.

"Get dressed or we really will be late this time."

"That's what you always say!" his brother whined, "hey Rox, aren't _you_ late by now?"

He sat up and looked at the clock-8am. His mouth dropped open as he turned to Sora, "I'll never make it in time! Why didn't anyone wake me up?!"

"I think I hear your alarm going. I know! Come to school with me and Riku!"

The tall teen gave a look of utter hatred for the idea but said nothing. _Go to TTH? "_I…guess…they don't wear uniforms there…"

"Right! It'll be fun!

_Fun? Well…don't get carried Sora…_Roxas shrugged. What was another missed homeroom? _I'll have to intercept the call from my school though so mom doesn't find out I didn't go. _So he went to his own room, turned off the alarm and got dressed. _I'll have to sneak past mom so she doesn't know I'm still home. _ After shoving Sora around a bit to try and claim more mirror space they did their hair amidst Riku's claims that they would both make them late. _Oh shut up. You probably take longer than we do to get ready pretty boy. _He glared at the taller boy's image in the mirror while he wasn't looking.

Finally, their preparations were complete and the three plodded downstairs with Roxas having taken cover behind Riku(not by any choice of his of course).

"Are you two heading out now? Have some breakfast before you go Sora."

"I'm fine mom!" the j-pop fanatic motioned to the two of them to go ahead so he could distract their mom.

Roxas tried walking as in sync with his brother's boyfriend as possible though the difference in stature made for some awkward looking movement. _**Please **__don't notice me. Keep her busy Sora._ Despite the feeling he was in a Bond movie the blonde managed not to get too nervous-other than the sweaty palms-and overcompensate like Sora always did. _He tries to sneak around in the most discreet way ever and it just ends up looking suspicious…_

His cellphone rang-seemingly louder than it ever had. They both froze. If they just kept walking now they could make it but if he didn't answer his mom might come over to see what was going on. Where was a cardboard box when he needed it? He opened then closed the phone then shoved it back into his pocket. He and Riku stepped through the front door and out to the front steps.

"That was close."

"Yeah. I wonder who was calling me…" his finger hit the redial button just as Sora emerged victorious from the house. Completely without a jacket of course so the first words were "why is it so cold?!" followed closely by "hey, don't talk on your cellphone when you're with people Rox!"

"Sora," Riku said in a not at all pissed off sounding voice.

"Let's go before she comes out here."

Because TTH lay on the opposite side of the town they needed only to take the city line rather than the one to other towns. Compared to his 2 hour bus/train quest the 45 minute trip to Sora's school felt like paradise.

Though it wasn't as bad as The World that Never Was, West Twilight Town had just as horrible of a reputation. _It's not like there's metal detectors everywhere…but that guy with the toque-is that Seifer? No…just looks like him I guess…? Is looking at me like he's gonna kill me. _ Added to the weird guy the second they walked, or rather, ran into the school some kid got stuffed into a locker. Another thing that became blatantly obvious besides the fact that everyone cowered in fear from Riku was that the two knew _everyone._ They couldn't walk two feet without someone waving or coming up to say hi. _I didn't know Sora was so popular. He's kind of a dork. …Like Demyx. _Just thinking of the other blonde made him frown-how did someone like that get into college anyway?

"Come on Rox, we're going to the cafeteria!" and off they went kind of like the Three Muskateers except they didn't have swords or plumed hats. And Roxas would rather not be associated with Riku.

Once inside the heavily populated cafeteria they sat down at one of the long tables lined up from one side of the room to the other. The fair haired kid sitting there sat up a little bit straighter and looked at them with a grin.

"Hey, Sora!"

"Tidus! Did you win the Blitzball tournament on Friday?"

"Of course we won! Hey, who's that? Your twin?" Tidus laughed loudly.

"Cool! Nope, we're not twins. I'm a _little_ bit older. Well, we're only half brothers really. Same dad different mom. Or…no wait, that's right. That's why our ages are so close."

…_Did you actually just forget that our moms are different? Dad had an affair with my mom so now you only see __**your**__ mom during the summer. How do you even forget that? _ He stared down at the hand that had been thrust at him.

"The name's Tidus!"

"Roxas."

_Why did I want to add 'got it memorized?'?! Stupid Axel. _Catchphrases aside the two shook hands and were done with introductions then leapt into conversation. Or as much conversation as could be had with Roxas anyway.

"What're you into Roxas? I play Blitzball."

"I Struggle."

"…Like…to survive or the hitting people with bats game? I was thinking of joining that this year."

"Ew, don't Tidus, you'll get Roxas germs all over you!" Sora commented loudly enough that he could be heard over the dull roar of the rest of the student's conversations.

"Shut up Sora, I don't have germs okay?!"

"Ew, you have cooooooties!"

He kept his eyes focused on his brother-_what's wrong with you anyway? _The older sibling then proceeded to poke him in the arm. Repeatedly with varying degrees of pressure. Then he screamed about how he was risking infection. Roxas didn't even pretend to want to play along and instead turned his attention to the very interesting-as far as walls went-white walls of the cafeteria. Luckily Sora grew tired of things quickly and decided to bother Riku by making fun of his bangs instead. His cellphone buzzed in his back pocket but this time he didn't ignore it.

Where are you? Olette.

_Oh yeah, I forgot about school. Somehow. She's probably freaking out. _ He texted back his location and got a reply within a minute.

Why are you there? Mr. Leonhart said he'll call your mom.

It'll be fine. G2G. 

She didn't message him back and for some reason he got the oddest feeling that he was in deep trouble.

End of chapter.

Too much dialogue in this chapter TAT I chose Yagami for Axel's last name for an obvious reason. Yagami=Imagay. I like using that name okay!? And Roxas' last name is actually the last name of one of my friends at school. Ha ha Tanaka-san wa kowai desu!

"What do you suggest then Roxas? Pretend you're _not_ a 15 year old kid and have my way with you?"

-everyone BUT Axel's reply. "Uhhhh …YES?" ha ha

But seriously guys, I think next chapter's gonna be the chapter. They may actually yeh know…kiss or some shit.

Sorry about Tidus being ooc. But I've never actually played ff10 soooo…

Fyi: the weird kid in the toque is Daisukenojo Bito from the World Ends with You. And he wouldn't kill anyone, much less Roxas. LOL he does look like Seifer. I'm kinda obsessed with adding WEWY characters into KH fic for whatever reason o_O Imagine if Sho was Roxas' tutor. That would go poorly. Oh yeah, and the guy sitting at the bus terminal waaay back in ch.1 was Irvine. And the chick was Tifa. Obviously. Ha ha. Nobody noticed but me…did they…XD It's okay. Putting random character references in is fun even if I'm the only one who gets them! Until next time!


	7. Chapter 7

I never expected this fic to get this long! I never expected it would take so much work to make Axel and Roxas friggin at least kiss each other's faces off either. -_-' But thanks for all the reviews and watches etc etc once again, it's really nice to know people are enjoying the fic! :D

Chapter 7

"Roxas, I don't know what's gotten into you! Failing classes, skipping school. What's this all about?"

"It's not about anything."

She had her hands on her hips in typical mom fashion-his dad was at work still, "don't you dare lie to me Roxas Tanaka!"

"I'm _not_. I just don't want to go to a class I'm failing."

"That doesn't make any sense!"

_Who said it has to? __**You**__ asked. _He tried to stand up but she pushed him back down into the dining room chair. His glares bounced right off of her.

"I was your age once Roxas. I know that certain…things seem more important now but school should come first."

_Is she giving me the TALK?! You're a little late._ Of course he didn't _say_ that but he did think it. _Next thing she'll do is start buying me condoms._ He grimaced.

"Don't make that face! I'm being serious. No cellphone or TV for a week and no going out except for school."

"What?! But on Thursday-" his mouth clamped shut.

"I don't care what plans you have, your tutor is coming over that day."

And with that she held out her hand for his phone then sent him to his room. the blonde stared out his bedroom window-it'd already started getting dark and it was only 5:30. _I can't believe Olette ratted on me. Adter all the times she promised not to._ He frowned. _Not much to do but homework._ Which was probably the plan all along. _Screw that, I'd rather go to sleep._

~~**~~

Olette wouldn't look at him or even sit beside him. of course Hayner kept glancing between the two, opening his mouth the talk then saying nothing. Pence went on with business as usual in the form of telling them all the rumours he'd heard and saying how they'd make great stories for the school newspaper. The blonde didn't try to make contact with her-she would probably approach him later. Kairi and Namine were both absent for whatever reason but Roxas didn't wonder. He was too busy worrying about Thursday and his inability to tell Axel he wouldn't be able to go. His mom hadn't talked to him when he reached the first floor-she'd said something about going to work early for the rest of the week to his dad last night. _She left before I did. _Axel hadn't been on the bus this morning either though because of his early, though because of his early bed time the previous night he hadn't fallen asleep on the bus.

"Hayner, can I borrow your phone?"

"You want to borrow this piece of crap? Alright, but what happened to yours? Finally break it?" the other guy handed it over anyway.

"Mom took it."

"Then you shouldn't be using Hayner's either…"

He looked up, giving a quarter of his power glare, "it's only one call."

"Who are you calling Roxas?" Pence blinked-_is it so weird that I've got other people to call other than you guys?_

"My _tutor_."

"Huh? Your mom made you get a tutor?! That's totally lame!"

He didn't address the comment and punched in Axel's phone number. It rang a couple times then went to a machine. With all his friends watching he kept it short.

"Can't make it Thursday. Sorry. Grounded. No cellphone."

The three others present raised their eyebrows like he had just put off a drug deal or something equally illegal. Instead of telling them however he just handed the four pound cell to Hayner and went back to eating his lunch. Though cafeteria food tasted like cardboard anyway. _Or poison which is what I would've got from mom. _He let the rest of his macaroni and cheese congeal on his plate having lost his appetite after the look Olette had just shot him. _ She's acting totally crazy…It's only one day…Besides, I'm the one who should be angry. __**She **__told on __**me**__. _Which had shocked him beyond all belief when his mom had let it slip and in the same breath proclaimed the girl's virtue at supposedly 'doing the right thing'. He had decided not to talk to her then. _We'll see who cracks first. _

~~**~~

Gym class dragged on, punctuated by questions from Hayner about 'what was up with him and Olette?'. The class had been forced inside to learn about health and fitness-which Mr. Highwind openly said he didn't like. _More like he ranted for 15 minutes then had to go take a smoke break while leaving us to read about how smoking can cause lung cancer._

Despite leaving earlier Mr. Highwind had returned and now stood in the front of the class waiting. None of them knew what for seeing as everyone just stared back with 'what the hell?' written clearly on their faces(in some cases, literally). But Hayner kept on throwing little bits of paper at Roxas' head until class finally came to a close 30 minutes later.

The two blondes loped down to their lockers in silence until Hayner slammed his hand against the metal space.

"Roxas, what's going on with you?" his face had twisted in apparent pain though considering his little outburst that couldn't have been far from the truth.

"What do you mean?" Roxas stuck his head into his locker pretending to be looking for something.

"Come on man…you're acting weird. Like something's bothering you."

He tried to lie. "I don't know what you're talking about."

But his friend pulled him backwards by the shirt out into the open, "you're a bad liar. You used to tell us everything and now you hardly talk at all!"

"I have nothing to say."

"You don't even listen."

"I do so!"

"Prove it then."

He looked at his shoes and Hayner snorted, "that's what I thought. Come talk to us when you start giving a crap about your friends Roxas."

"Hayner, wait!"

_He really does hate me. He only looks at Seifer like that…what am I doing? _His hand grasped the other boy's sleeve and he sighed.

"I really like someone. But they act like they don't like me. But I know they do."

"Who is it? I don't blame them for not liking an idiot like you," Hayner's expression changed to one of affectionate annoyance.

"I…can't tell you."

"Oh great, back to the start again."

"Hayner I'm serious. I really can't okay?" he pleaded with his eyes and the taller teen ran and hand through his hair.

"Why do I put up with your crap? I'm late for history but wait for me after school."

"Okay."

_Now the only one I have to worry about is Olette. She'll be the hardest one to convince though. But I can't tell her about Axel. She'll tell mom and then it'll be all over. _He walked slowly to geography, carefully weaving his way through the steadily thinning crowd. _One more class and I'm done. So I can go home and do nothing…_ The blonde hoisted his backpack up higher onto his shoulder and stepped inside the classroom for Geography class-the one class he knew no one in. But the travelling substitute teacher immediately stopped him.

"You do not have a pass."

"…Um…I was sick yesterday. My mom called in this morning," he murmured. _ It was fine for all my other teachers…_

"I'm afraid if you do not have a pass you cannot join the class."

"But Sir…"

"I'm sorry Roxas but those are the rules."

So he went to go hide in a bathroom stall for the duration of classes. Inside the bathroom was remarkably quiet too-even the softest footstep echoed through the space. No one else entered either until the final bell rang and everyone rushed to the bathroom.

The teen had reached Hayner's locker when he saw her. Of course she wore her fiercest look that effectively communicated that she most certainly would _not_ give up as easily as Hayner had. He swallowed thickly-_why did I never notice how scary Olette can look before?!_

"We have to talk, now-please."

She said 'please' but it may as well have been 'you're coming with me trash'. His bag got handed over to Hayner-his only ally and off they went. The girl didn't take far; only about until the back field. Nobody else was really around yet much to his extreme panic. _Great. Now she can yell all she wants._ But she didn't. her pretty green eyes just remained trained on him like she wanted him to say something.

"I'm really sorry," the words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them. _No I'm not! Why should I be?_

"I'm sorry I told your mom. I thought…maybe that would make you realize how weird you're being. It's okay if you hate me."

"What?! I can't do that Olette! You're my best friend so…Oh."

_They're my friends. So…why am I hiding stuff from them? They're my best friends and they think I hate them…_ he blinked a couple times and she smiled. "I'm really sorry Olette! I didn't want you to think…"

"We're your friends Roxas. So tell us the bad stuff too. Did you know that Pence still has the stuffed Koala we got him in 1st grade?"

"Are you serious?"

The brunette nodded then tugged on her hair, "I think I'm in trouble for that. But Roxas we want you back-the real you. The Usual Spot is lonely when you're not really there."

"The reason I've been acting weird is Axel. That stupid game. Everything is just…messed up," the grass suddenly became very interesting to him.

"You mean that guy who you met on the bus?"

_She remembers?_ He nodded, "yeah. Him. Olette I… …I…I'm pretty sure I'm gay."

The words hung in the air for a moment as if surprised at their own appearance. His stomach dropped and he had the distinct feeling that he was on a roller coaster-a very bumpy rollercoaster. One that made his heart pump fast enough that he thought it just might burst into flames as he awaited her reaction.

Her eyes widened slightly and her mouth opened a tiny bit. She said nothing though. And it made bile rise to the back of his throat.

"Are you sure you're sure?"

"Yeah…"

"But how? I thought I would've noticed…"

Roxas breathed through his nose so he only had to open his mouth to speak, "I don't know. I tried being with a girl Olette. I really did. But I couldn't do it. I didn't feel anything. Kissing her was…empty."

_I'm gonna puke. _She strode over and put both hands on either side of his face. Her eyes stared directly at him unflinchingly, "there is nothing wrong with that Roxas. You're going to be okay."

"O-Okay."

And he believed her. The nausea receded just a little. Enough for him to stop making a conscious effort not to throw up anyway.

"Do you want to tell Hayner and Pence?"

"Don't."

She bobbed her head, "come on, they probably think I murdered you by now."

"You promise you won't?"

"I promise. This is just between us."

And they went back to their other friends without another word on the conflict they'd previously faced.

~~**~~

Immediately after getting home Sora attacked him. the brunette boy wore a grin that nearly blinded him. besides being tackled to the very hard floor Roxas didn't complain too loudly when his sibling started rambling about some random popstar's new single. And then came the magic words. The ones that made the blonde's lips curl up in the corners.

"Axel called!"

Before he could ask for details though Sora had already moved onto bigger-and stupider-things. Like how Riku's hair reminded him of a sweater he'd owned when they were kids and how every time he touched said sweater hair Riku stopped moving entirely.

"He's like a crocodile or something!"

_An emo pretty boy crocodile…_he nodded along with the further stories of the couple's exploits. Their trip to Wild Kat, the face Riku made when he wanted to cuddle and most importantly of all, the issue of what to get Riku for Christmas. _For a straight guy you sure act like you're totally in love with a guy._

"That's great Sora. After I'm done puking can you tell me what Axel _said_ on the phone?"

"Do you feel sick?"

"…Of hearing about Riku. Yeah. Just tell me what he said."

"Fight me for it," Sora got to his feet.

"What?"

"You heard me Rox. Fight me!"

"No Sora."

"Please?"

"Why? You'll break something. Like a leg," he stared pointedly at the leg the other boy had broken last year in an overzealous attempt at flying a kite.

"Fine, fine! He said 'don't be skipping school again Roxy. Got it memorized?. Also that he'd see you on Thursday."

"Okay. Thanks."

He quickly took his leave of the entrance way in favour of going to the kitchen. And getting a pudding cup. Only to have cruel fate snatch it from him yet again in the form of him opening it, Sora slipping on the tile then crashing into his brother thus knocking the pudding from his hand. _Is there someone who doesn't want me to have these puddings?! _He cleaned up the mass with an annoyed glare shooting at Sora's back. Which was when Roxas got an idea. A wonderful, awful idea. _She never said I couldn't use the home phone! _He immediately ran-leaving Sora looking utterly bewildered in the kitchen-to the phone in the basement. He dialled Axel's number quicker than he'd ever dialled a number before.

"Hello?"

"It's Roxas."

"_Oh,_ Axel's little _boy toy_, _right._ He's not here right _now_."

The teen frowned, "who is this then?"

"How _cruel, _Axel _didn't_ tell you about me. I'm _only_ his friend after all."

_Okay…? This guy sounds so overly dramatic it's scary._ He clenched the phone tighter in his hand and bit back an irritated sigh.

"Oh."

"My _name_ is _Marluxia_. And _no,_ you _can't_ call me Marly."

"I wasn't going to."

"Hmph. Well _fine_ then. Do you _want_ me to _tell _him you called?"

"Uh…yeah."

Marluxia hung up. _Bye? Why are all of Axel's friends so weird? First there's Demyx who acts like an older version of Sora, then Xigbar who sounds like he belongs on an old TV show about a beach, and Zexion who hates me and is a freak who plays video games all the time. Now this guy and his weird word stressing. _For some reason it made him excited to find out who _else_Axel know. But that would have to wait because the front door had just opened meaning one of his parents was home. So to perpetuate the idea that he was a poor soul who had no privileges Roxas flopped down on the couch and stared at the ceiling.

A head poked itself around the corner. _Oh it's just dad. He's home pretty early. _Which at supper he learned was because he'd been laid off from work. His mother reacted in shock of course though it dissipated momentarily so she could explain what it meant to Sora. Who loudly complained who knew what it meant. They ate in silence after that. And afterwards both brothers got sent to their rooms. He didn't bother trying to listen in on the conversation and instead went about trying to do his homework.

They'd moved onto Quadratic equations and other such nonsense that made Roxas' head hurt. _Good thing I have a tutor I guess. _Who would be coming the night before the quiz but he supposed it was really the thought that counted. _and the last time I learned in a day._ He gave up on the math for now and turned on his stereo. Maybe listening to a bit of Bond of Flames and Oathkeeper would cheer him up about his inability to do 10th grade math.

~~**~~

He jumped off the bus and started running. _Crap. I can't believe I fell asleep!_ But he actually kind of _could _ believe it considering the lack of sleep he'd gotten the night before. This time it had been _Sora_ who had been the one who needed to be told everything would be alright even if they were going to be poor.

"Good of you to show up on time for once Mr. Tanaka."

Roxas just dragged himself to his seat and sat there trying to catch his breath. All of his friends raised their eyebrows at him but he didn't get a chance to explain until work was assigned.

"Missed my stop."

"You fell asleep again? Drink some coffee or something, jeez," Hayner said while looking at his textbook with a totally confused look on his face.

"I don't have time to make any. Besides, I'm already short enough."

"That's true, you are!" the taller blonde laughed too raucously.

"That doesn't sound like work."

"You're not too short Roxas. Hayner's just a freak of nature," Pence chimed in softly.

"Hey!"

"Do I have to separate you four?"

"No sir," they chanted in unison.

Most of their lunch period was spent with Olette trying to teach them how to do the math work. Though Roxas idnd't pay much attention only because he knew Axel would be coming over tomorrow. And it seemed Olette had kept her word for now because no one said anything that would indicate them knowing. She kept giving him smiles behind everyone else's back though. _Keep that up and they'll get the wrong idea…_

He tried Axel again when he got home but got the answering machine. It'd only been about 2 or 3 days since he'd seen the red head last but the way their entire 'friendship' was going he found himself overly anxious to see Axel again. _Or at least talk with him. He's not making this easy…asshole. You could at least pick up your phone. _

"You're reached Axel. If you're calling about tutoring leave your name and number. If you're calling about work same to you. If it's any of you guys just leave your name. *BEEP*."

"It's Roxas. Try picking up your phone sometime."

With a deep sigh he hung up. Either he was just calling at bad times or Axel was screening his calls. That was a depressing thought, that was for sure.

~~**~~

Axel was once again in the living room when he arrived home. This time though there were no dramatic stand offs-they just climbed the stairs to Roxas' room.

"You-"

"Let's get the homework finished first. You can yell at me later."

"…Fine."

He set down the pile of papers and his textbook then flipped to the proper page. His fingers stabbed at the paper.

"What is _this_ supposed to be?!"

"That's quadratic equations Roxas. They're hard but not impossible. On the bright side-unless you go into math you won't be using it after this."

He slammed his hands on the desk, "then why are they teaching me it?!"

"Because you're in the advanced class. If it's too hard move down to the easier level, got it memorized?" Axel put his cheek into his palm, "it's no big deal."

"But all my friends are in that class."

"If they're really your friends they'll stay that way even if you don't have the same classes."

_I guess he's right…but still…I don't want to move down…_ he sighed and Axel handed him a pencil.

"I'll still teach you."

Roxas nodded-he'd never had a problem with stupid math before but now all of a sudden he was a complete idiot? _Besides, aren't guys supposed to better at math?!_

"Okay. So you see this? This is the start of your equation. Kind of like your Struggle bat-it's there for you to win. Commit it to memory."

~~**~~

For once dinner was not only filled with Sora's talking but Axel's as well. Other than being completely embarrassed by his brother's laughable attempts to make it look like he'd never seen the man in his life Roxas didn't have to kick anyone under the table. And even his dad seemed to like the college student. _It took him half a year to start talking to Hayner past 'hello'._

"So what are your life plans Mr. Yagami?"

"Mm…well, something to do with Chemistry probably."

"Ew, Chemistry's so hard! Do you get to blow stuff up in College?" Sora asked then stabbed the piece of beef Roxas had been going for.

_Dammit. He _took an extra helping of vegetables instead_._

"I had to make an explosive solution for an experiment last week. I almost burned my partner and mine's eyebrows off though so I wouldn't recommend it."

_Your eyebrows are already half gone anyway…_the blonde kept eating while keeping an ear open to the conversation around him. Luckily his parents had learned that Roxas + food equalled zero conversation so they didn't bother trying to include him. but Axel did.

"You're taking biology, right Roxas?"

"Mmph."

"That's a yes! Roxas doesn't talk when he's eating. I'm only taking general science with my friend Riku!" Sora practically shouted.

"Huh. So you learn a bit of everything."

"Yup! Riku's really good at it but I'm pretty bad."

_That's because you're too busy ogling Riku like a creepy stalker._ It was then that Roxas got to his feet and excused himself. _Ew, just thinking about them together makes me lose my appetite. _

"You don't want your pudding?" his mom stared at him like he'd just said that he'd come from outer space and was now returning there.

"Axel can have it."

When he got to the kitchen to rinse his plate he heard his mom ask if Axel was okay with Roxas using his first name instead of calling him 'Mr. Yagami'. The teen didn't stick around to hear the answer hoping that it would be what he thought it was. He barely even reached his room when Axel walked through the door. Though he could have sat on the bed next to his 'student' the older guy opted for the desk chair instead. He smiled at Roxas and held up his stolen dessert.

"You want this?"

"I said you could have it."

"Not a big fan of pudding. Catch."

It landed on the bed beside him along with the spoon a second later. He just examined it with his eyes for a moment then turned his attention back to Axel.

"How did you know I skipped school?"

"Sora told me when I called. You said you were grounded so I asked."

_But why do you care?_ The fair haired teenager didn't saying anything in return. Axel dug around in his pocket and pulled out his lighter. _Don't start that again. _But he did. Flicking it open then using his gloved finger to snap it closed again. Each time there was a scraping sound signalling the flame bursting nto life. Other than that he could hear their own breathing but nothing else until the red head talked.

"What's wrong?"

"I told Olette about being gay."

"How'd it go?"

"We're still friends," Roxas replied, finally peeling off the seal of his pudding.

"Good. Then what's what?"

He shrugged, took a spoonful of his dessert. _Vanilla. Not too bad. _

"Mad because you're grounded?"

"Mm."

"What else?"

"…Missed you."

Like with Olette the words didn't simply come out then disappear-they stuck around, made them both shift awkwardly in their seats.

"I got you something," his tutor rooted through his own bag for a few minutes.

"Oh."

"Here. Since you couldn't come today," this time he actually approached instead of throwing it.

"Why?"

He turned over the hard plastic CD case in his hand then raised his head to meet the green eyes staring down at him.

"Like I said. You couldn't come so I got it for you."

"How much?"

"Don't worry about it," the lighter disappeared into the back pocket of his jeans again.

He placed the CD on the bed next to him then grabbed the man before he could even think of pulling away. Arms wrapped around the kind of girly waist and he grinned.

"Thank you! Mom would've never let me out of the house to get it!"

Axel's face exploded into a disturbingly bright shade of pink. "W-Woah. I'm you're happy…you should let-"he swallowed, "let go."

"No."

"What?"

"I said no," after a few moments of completely unsexy balancing on his bed Roxas stood taller than the man by almost a head and half. His fingers quickly tangled themselves in the crimson hair making escape almost impossible. He moved his face until it hung only a few inches from Axel's. from here he could hear the breath being taken into the red head's lungs then held there.

"Roxas…don't do this to me…"his voice came out just above a whisper.

"Then you shouldn't have started this."

Their lips brushed so softly Roxas almost didn't know if he'd actually kissed the man at all. But Axel's breathing stopped completely so he must have. He didn't waste the opportunity though and pressed their lips together again waiting for some sort of response. Even if he'd pretended it meant nothing the other guy returned the affection. Hands rested on Roxas' hips and parted his lips when the blonde ran his tongue across the bottom on. Their torsos ground against each other as the two fought one another with their mouths. A moan reverberated through the space of their joined, open lips but Roxas couldn't process whether it was his own or Axel's. Either way It woke them up to their actions, how loud they were probably being and the pair separated-both staring in disbelief of the other.

Seme!Roxas?! In mai fic?! But honestly…Axel uke is so cute. "noooo don't don't me or I'll… …" ha ha ha. It'll probably change itself around once they stop being so damn stubborn and get together for reals. But seriously, I've never made out with anyone. I am young and impressionable(okay, so maybe just the 2nd one…) so sorry it's not all sexy ._.

Try not to hate Olette! I always imagine her as the voice of reason amongst the group of guys so it makes sense that she'd be all "…UR ACTIN' WEIRD AND I DUN LIKE IT!" and bother the crap out of gently reassure Roxas that he srsly needs to tell his friends stuff, srsly. She's my favourite girl character though so I'm kinda biased ^^;

Yes, the "Roxas got an idea. A wonderful, awful idea" IS a reference to The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. I read that book every Christmas. …shut up.

Lol poor Roxas is totally jealous of Sora and Riku's disgustingly sweet gay Disney movie relationship XD


	8. Chapter 8

Shorter chapter this time around. Sorry for the delay!

Chapter 8

"That wasn't anything Roxas. It didn't happen."

"Yeah it did. Even if you want to pretend it didn't you like me too otherwise you wouldn't have kissed back," his hands continued resting on Axel's shoulders.

A hand went up to its owner's mouth and the red head got the universal expression for 'I'm gonna puke' on his face. Roxas didn't have time to ask before Axel bolted from the room. Without any support he fell backward onto his bed, almost smashing his head off the window sill. _What the hell?_ He recovered fairly quickly due to his Struggle reflexes then chased after his tutor reaching the bathroom apparently just after the 'action'. The door closed with an audible 'bang'. _He looks really…vulnerable hunched over like that._ Instead of being afraid of what touching him would do Roxas knelt and gathered the red locks into a ponytail. Once when Olette had gotten the flu-yet still insisted on coming to school-he'd perfected the technique of holding long hair back.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sorry. I kind of puke when I get too nervous," had his face not already gone deathly pale it would've been the colour of a fire engine.

"…You're so uncool."

Axel wiped his mouth and turned to look at Roxas, "Sorry I don't live up to your standards."

_Did I just make him feel stupid? No wonder you've got no boyfriend Roxas…_ he stared at the blue patterned tile.

"I'm _kidding_," the college student flashed a shaky smile.

"Oh. Want a drink of water?" the blonde stood up to get it without waiting for an answer.

He turned on the tap and filled the cup standing on the back of the sink next to the toothbrushes. When he handed over the drink Axel's fingers closed over his until Roxas let go.

"Why do you always wear gloves?"

The colour started returning to the man's cheeks and he shrugged, "cold hands."

"Oh. that's not gonna happen every time…right? The puking I mean."

"You say it like there'll be a next time Roxas. I told you I can't."

He tried not to pout-though that tended to be his default expression when it came to Axel. His lips turned down in a frown. In a way he wanted to cry but that wasn't exactly fair and besides, the last thing he wanted was for Axel to think he was a kid. Adults only cried in movies.

"Whatever. I have to study so you can go."

"Okay."

Axel stood up making the height difference between them even more astronomical. _ If only I was taller…then maybe he wouldn't treat me like a kid._

"Wait. You're not going to avoid me again…right?" it sounded so needy and pathetic but he didn't care. If Axel was going to run again he wanted to at least know so he could track him down.

"I can't."

_What's that supposed to mean?! Because you're my tutor or because you like me? _Roxas didn't walk him to the door or go on downstairs at all. For now he was content listening to his CD and wondering what buying it for him had meant.

~**~

_My brain is fried…_the blonde stared blankly at the chalkboard without taking down what Ms. Gainsborough was writing on it. _Mr. Leonhart wasn't kidding when he told us to study…I wonder if Axel will get fired if I fail…_ He ran a hand over his spikes with a sigh. Which was immediately caught by Olette. She opened her mouth but he just shook his head and it closed again. Hayner and Pence continued talking about the new game they wanted to buy apparently unaware of their surroundings.

His eyes stayed on the scenery just beyond the window. _Mall, skyscraper, college. Wait. College?_

"Hey Olette, do you know what school that is?"

"The one we just passed? Destiny Island College. How come?"

He shrugged, "just wondering."

She nodded but one of her eyebrows rose ever so slightly. Roxas didn't reply. _So I could just get off and go to where he lives. If I could figure that out anyway. _He let his frown deepen-_but how can I do that?_

~~**~~

"So you actually _kissed?_ Holy cow what'd you do!?"

"I almost threw up on him."

Demyx bit his bottom lip, "that's not very romantic."

"It's not _supposed_ to be romantic, got it memorized?"

"What's the big deal? It's only 8 years," the music major said, his face appearing between his knees as he constructed the mullet-mohawk hybrid.

"_Only._ Ever heard of _jail_ Demyx? Cause that's where I'll be going if it happens again got it-"

"But he likes you. He's the one chasing after you so…it's not your fault!" the blonde stood upright again then tested the stability of his hairdo with his hands.

"Tell it to the judge. Or better yet his _mom_."

"Why would you tell the judge's mom?"

"You know what? Ask your 'snuggle bun'-he's a law major so he can tell you in terms your pea sized brain can compute how fucked I would be if I went out with Roxas!"

Demyx's bottom lip quivered, "you're mean!"

The shorter guy quickly fled the room however when the threats to his hair, sitar and person began. _Yeah, right. __**Only**__ 8 years. _He rolled over and stared at the blank wall a little more than a foot from his face. _ I should get up. Told Marluxia I'd help him with his stupid flowers so he'd tell me what Roxas said on the phone._ In a single movement he managed to fling himself out of bed onto the floor. After pulling on a pair of jeans and a DIC t-shirt he threw his hair into a ponytail without combing it. _He didn't say I had to look good._ His teeth were brushed in the dorm bathroom and he took a piss with his toothbrush still hanging out of his mouth like half the others did. The ones who actually bothered anyway. Finally he pulled on his gloves and one of the many black jackets from his wardrobe.

His car sat in the school parking lot collecting dust and a few parking fines until he started it up. _Probably could've walked._ But he drove instead arriving in about 10 minutes at his destination.

Had the house belonged to him Marluxia probably would've painted it pink or had an enormous rose garden out front. _Thank god for student housing._ He parked out front seeing as Marluxia didn't own a car then walked up the walkway.

Of course it was Larxene who answered the doorbell. Like a cockroach doorman. He threw an annoyed expression on his face though his real emotion was more like 'damn I hate you'. Why Marluxia had taken his sloppy seconds he didn't know. _She's not even that good looking…_but he could tolerate her, like Zexion, in small doses. As long as she didn't talk too much.

"What're you here for?"

"Gardening. Or didn't your darling Marly tell you?" his hostility had already started rising between them unsprisingly. Even the way she leaned on the doorway made his irritated frown deeper.

"Just let me through so I can get this over with."

After a glaring fight she stepped aside and let him enter the plant infested house. Flower pots stacked by the door, pink flowers in vases on tables and gardening supplies piled wherever there was room. the walls hadn't been painted because the landlord had apparently gone on an hour long tirade about how if he found _any_ paint on the walls he'd sue them all.

He found the rose haired man in the tiny backyard-as if he'd be anywhere else. Having "delivered" their guest Larxene turned back to go do whatever ex-girlfriends did with their spare time.

"_Well_, you _did_ show up _after_ all."

Axel descended the back stairs and moved down into the garden being careful not to step on any of the flowers only because he didn't want his legs chopped off with gardening shears. Marluxia handed him a trowel.

"_So_ how did it _go?_ With _Roxas_?"

"What do _you_ care?" he stabbed the sharp part of the small shovel into the earth with some difficulty. _I wouldn't be surprised if it snowed soon._

"Why _shouldn't_ I? _Besides_ it's not every _day_ your friend goes after a _kid_."

_Nosey bastard._ He kept his eyes on the other man's face, eyebrows in an arc towards his nose. The pink haired guy smiled-more like smirked and pulled a weed out from the earth.

"_What_? Don't _tell_ me something _happened?"_

"He kissed me."

For whatever reason that made the botany student laugh, "oh _dear_. What_ever_ did you do?"

"Marluxia don't piss me off."

"Oh, I'm _making_ you _angry_?" he flicked a lock of hair over his shoulder.

Axel rolled his eyes, "all you need to know is that if you talk to him again…"

"Threats _again. Oh dear_, what a _violent _man you are _Axel._"

He glared but didn't bother beating the crap out of the flower fanatic-someone would do it for him before long. _Why the hell am I even here? You can't plant anything at this time anyway._ Marluxia had begun wrapping sacks around the small shrubs on the other side of the yard. _ And there's no way I'm doing __**that**__. Should probably call Demyx before Xigbar gets around to telling me how 'totally harsh I was dude'. _For now though he had to chop the rose bushes down to little stubs-_I've got nothing better to do anyway._

~~**~~

Namine had joined them at the Usual Spot, wedging herself in between Olette and the arm rest. _Good thing she didn't try sitting next to __**me**__. _Hayner currently occupied himself with throwing darts while chatting to Pence about video games yet again. The girls and Roxas sat in silence mostly because they wouldn't be able to hear themselves over Hayner's loud voice. _Fine with me, it was awkward enough when Hayner invited Namine here…_ It almost made him wish he was still grounded so he could avoid the girl completely. She hadn't so much as glanced at him since their 'date'-not that he was at all eager to talk about it. in fact the only person, other than his friends , who he _did_ want to talk to was apparently on the phone with other people all the time. Or at least for the past couple days. _ And you said you wouldn't avoid me. Well too bad because you __**have**__ to come over tomorrow._

Only he _didn't. _No Axel in the living room or den or his room. The blonde probably could've strangled someone. In fact _nobody_ was home. Sora had left a note saying he'd gone out on the kitchen table over the one left by their mother saying there'd been an emergency. _ What __**kind**__ of emergency?! A fashion emergency, a health emergency?! _ He texted Axel-because it was cheaper than calling. Where are you?

Can't come. Sorry.

Why?!

Something came up. Not avoiding you. Settling health ins. Stuff.

Call me.

His phone rang. _You're being so obedient…kind of freaky…_

"What's going on?"

"Demyx broke his arm trying to tackle Xigbar."

"Idiot I…" he muttered.

"Was worried? I'm flattered. But nothing's wrong with me other than wanting to kill myself," he could hear Demyx wailing dramatically in the background.

"Did they cut his arm off or just put a cast on it…"

Axel laughed, "I think he's convinced they amputated."

"The way he's yelling…"

"Ew, they're being sickening again Roxy. Take him to _your_ room Xigbar, I'm sitting right here!"

"Sora and Riku do that all the time-it's so gross," he shook his head to rid himself of the disturbing pictures cropping up in his mind.

"Those two are bad, I wanted to gag the entire time we were at WildKat."

"Me too. They always come to _my_ house too. If I wanted to see it I'd go watch a chick flick," the blonde stuck a finger down his throat miming puking until he realized Axel couldn't see it.

"Those are Demyx's favourite kind, got it memorized?"

"Sora's too. He watches _Pretty Woman_ every year on his birthday and cries about it."

"They're so similar it's pretty annoying."

"Meet me somewhere," he blurted out, voicing a random whim that probably wouldn't get listened to.

"I can't right now. But next week okay? Bring one of your friends or something."

_So we're not alone together. Asshole. _His face cracked into a too wide smile. "Sure," he said through gritted teeth, "I'll bring Olette. You should bring Demyx."

"Demyx? …Well…I guess if he's free…"

_Perfect. If everything goes as planned we won't have a chaperone for long. _ He almost felt the need to cackle or arrange his fingers in the evil genius steeple but didn't. _I'll save that for when my plan is accomplished._ They agreed on a meeting day of Wednesday at 4:00pm at the bus terminal in front of the mall. The meeting was strictly for studying purposes only of course. _ Yeah, right. Studying._ He hung up the phone. _Victory will be mine Axel. _

* * *

LOL Axel goes to DIC. That was totally unintentional by the way-I didn't notice until I wrote it then looked back and was like "HA HA HA HAAAAAA DIC!".

WildKat is the name of the coffee shop Axel, Roxas, Sora and Riku went to in the previous chapter. It's named after the coffee shop in WEWY XD Mr. Hanekoma owns it-I wanna try and sneak him into this fic ha ha.

And Roxas is an evil genius apparently :'D

Lately I've been having trouble writing this fic simply because my mind is on other things(mainly exams _). But also the fact that they're starting to get grossly out of character. I stopped quite a few times and thought to myself "what the hell are you doing? They don't act like this in the game AT ALL! WTF! YOU SUCK. All I have is a beginning and characters that are quickly deviating from their original selves-Axel in particular. I didn't want there to be a case of "Draco in leather pants" going on but gah, he doesn't feel like himself at all T_T I promise I'll make him act cool soon! ^^;;; I hate this chapter…


	9. Chapter 9

Sorry for the wait guys! ^^

Since you didn't sign in or anything maxam I'll answer your review here…

Um…I'd prefer if you DIDN'T use the storyline elsewhere to be perfectly honest-not that this is a horribly original plot or anything …Unless it's just a private RP between you and a friend or using the "fall asleep on someone on the bus thing then that's fine since I've got no claim on that plot device or anything I appreciate your suggestions however Keyblades don't exist in this universe seeing as there's no reason for them to. Thanks for reading! :)

Chapter 9

He pulled on his jacket and wrapped his scarf around his neck-the weather channel had said the weather would be horrible. _Good thing Olette didn't back out. Hayner would have._ But the girl just put on a lot of layers then smiled, "ready to go?"

"Uh…yeah…"

For some reason his stomach was doing flip flops like he was nervous. Which was completely ridiculous because why the heck would he be nervous going to see Axel? With Olette. _What if she thinks he's a perv and tells my mom?!_ He turned to look at her, face no doubt whiter than paper or close to it. _How does she not look worried at all?! _But she looked cute which was exactly what he was banking on when they ran into Axel and Demyx. _If he likes her then he'll probably kidnap her or at least keep them both busy enough that they stay away from me and Axel. _Of course they both had their textbooks so they could "study" seeing as this whole thing was apparently all about that which the brunette had been more than a bit happy about.

"So what's he like? Your tutor?"

"…Uh…a guy?"

"Roxas! You can't even give me a _name_?"

He scratched the back of his neck then blinked-_crap. Stupid Axel. Next I'll have a lighter and start flicking it open and closed. _The blonde shrugged, "it's Axel. I know he's older than me but-"

"Mm. Well, I know girls like older guys a lot so why not you?"

"…Oh. I thought…"

"I can't stop you from doing what you want Roxas. I realize that now. I'm your friend not your mom," she laughed and slung her backpack over her shoulder, "so if you like him I'll help you get him!"

_Is…Is he a Pokémon now? Does she mean it or is she just gonna say that then go tell my mom? _Roxas gave a small smile and off they went. The bus didn't take too long to arrive though they ended up being half an hour early. The cold drove them inside the mall and he figured out why Olette was being so nice to him when she started handing him shopping bags. _Mule again. Could be worse though I guess…_ His eyes kept scanning the space for the familiar long haired security guard but he didn't appear. He spotted Zexion in the arcade playing House of the Dead of course but unsurprisingly didn't feel any urge to go inside. Not even to gloat about how he'd still managed to talk to Axel even though the emo guy had tried to stop him. He glanced at the clock on the food court wall-_Only 5 minutes until the meeting time…_ Olette caught him and shook her head, "don't worry, I know what time it is. Let's go. Remember, be yourself!"

_Right. Myself. _

~~**~~

Demyx immediately latched onto Olette-wrapping his good arm around her head and shrieking rather loudly, "oh my god you're so cute!"

Her arms flailed, probably trying to signal Roxas to come save her but he remained standing beside Axel. The red head didn't step away though his hands were carefully tucked into the pockets of his jacket presumably to keep them from brushing against the blonde's accidently.

"You'll kill her Demyx."

"OH!" the music student pulled back and flattened down the girl's hair with his hand, "you're still alive right?"

"Um…Yes? My…My name is Olette, nice to meet you," she stuck out her hand.

Demyx stared at the outstretched appendage then took it, "Demyx! You can call me Demy if you want!"

"O-Okay."

_She looks so disturbed…_His breath pooled in the air as a white cloud before ascending to the sky-a few flakes of snow began tumbling down in its place. He cast a glance at Axel who had made a grave error by only wearing a zip up sweater despite the rapidly cooling weather. _Idiot. And you think you'll be able to walk around all day like that?_ Roxas buried his nose in his black and white checked scarf then shoved his hands into his pockets.

"We should get going," he muttered, voice muted further by the fabric in front of his face. His words got mostly carried away by the wind and lost to everyone but Axel who stood barely a foot from him.

"Yeah, it's freezing out, let's go."

"It's only cold because you didn't wear warm clothes! That's why I'm glad Xiggy made me wear his gloves and stuff."

"Oh yeah? Well what about him then?" the tallest one raised a short eyebrow.

"AH! What if he's freezing to death RIGHT NOW?!"

"Well maybe he's not going out so that's why he gave them to you?" Olette chimed in. She wore a cream coloured coat that hung halfway down to her knees and a loud pair of orange earmuffs and mittens.

"Oh. He did say he had a lot of studying to do…"

"So he'll be inside all day. So he won't be cold."

_Why does he look so calm when she tells him something but whenever someone else says anything he won't listen?_ Axel had begun hopping from foot to foot presumably in an effort to warm himself somewhat.

"Alright. Good that we got that sorted out so can we move? Preferably _now_?"

"Why don't you give him your scarf Roxas? Your coat has a high collar," the brunette suggested. She had a horrible gleam in her eyes that made him worried for his pride as a man.

_Why didn't I think of that?_ Roxas pulled the fabric from around his neck and turned to face the man who scratched the back of his neck in yet another demonstration of his various nervous habits._ At least it's not the lighter flicking one this time._ He had to stand on his tippy toes-and Axel had to hunch over-to loop the scarf around the college student's neck a couple times.

"Idiot."

"At least I don't have an ugly scarf."

"At least it's not an umbrella with flames on it!"

"That umbrella is cool."

"No it isn't! Olette? Is his ugly umbrella cool? IS IT?!"

She and Demyx stared at them both and started slowly backing away without saying anything. The teen glared, "I'll strangle you with that scarf and you won't be able to do anything about it."

"Oh yeah? You have to be able to reach my neck first," Axel leaned forward, his hands on his hips with a smirk on his face, "short ass."

"I'm NOT SHORT! You're a mutant Axel! A mutant okay!?"

"…Wow…What a couple…" Demyx murmured mostly to himself. _I'm scared! What if they go on a killing spree?! _ Olette had grabbed onto his coat in what he decided was a definitely adorable gesture.

"…Roxas is so…loud…is this his real character?"

Roxas continued snapping insults which didn't go unanswered by Axel of course. So the two _not_ arguing just continued on their way while the mortal kombat couple kept their string of angry remarks going as they too walked a considerable distance behind Demyx and Olette. He didn't mean any of them of course, except for the one about the umbrella because it really was ugly and completely tacky and hoped Axel really doesn't think he's short. _It's not like I can help it. Everyone in my family is short…_ He looked down at his hands, or rather the pockets they were hiding in. The pair both shut up suddenly when they found themselves standing at the subway platform on their own. _What the hell happened?! Did they just go on without us?!_ The blonde immediately texted Olette to inquire not so nicely about her location. Only to get a reply in the form of "oh I don't know…I guess you'll just have to meet us at the college ;)". _Oh, great. This is __**great**__. Now I've got my best friend trying to set me up with someone who always complains about how we can't be together. _

"They ran off without us."

"Dammit Demyx."

"So what do you want to do?"

"Go somewhere _warm_?" Axel laughed but a genuine shiver sent a tremor through his body.

"Skinny freaks like you should wear warmer clothes."

"Oh but Roxy I was so looking forward to torturing myself with the sight of you that I forgot to put on actual clothing," the reply came out sarcastic but Roxas detected a hint of truth in it considering the man's past record with acting stupid.

They stood waiting-though not for long-for the next train to come then shoved their way on with the rest of the people on the platform. His hand instinctively went to the red head's shirt to hold on while they swayed along with the subway as it rocketed down the track. One of Axel's long fingered hands had wrapped around one of the poles to keep them both mostly stable on the short ride. They jumped out of the doors at the next station which was when he struck. Before the man's hand could go back into his pocket Roxas grabbed it, not hazarding a glance at his face then pointed.

"That's the exit right?"

"The…Exit…Yeah, yeah it is. Commit it to memory, got it memorized?"

_Did I break him? _The teen laughed quietly to himself and pulled his brain fried companion along with him up the stairs to the station. People pushed in on them from every direction but he only tightened his grip when they got to the fare booth area. He noted with much satisfaction that no one looked at them like they were out of place or weird. _They probably think I'm just short._ He let a smile creep onto his face.

"Where to from here?"

"The uh…uh…"

"Axel, come on. No one cares."

"Okay. From here…oh yeah, I have to pick up some food so let's go to the supermarket."

…_Okay. Not really what I had in mind but okay. I don't mind grocery shopping._ He nodded, wondering what exactly Axel ate since people definitely couldn't live off handouts two times a week from the kid you were tutoring's mom. He knew the man didn't care for pudding or coffee though. _He probably likes spicy food. _The cold returned with a vengeance once they stepped outside the subway station but his hand at least was warm clasped in Axel's gloved one.

Demyx and Olette were nowhere to be found when they finally reached the dorm room much to Roxas' extreme delight. A piece of paper had been taped to the door that said "went out to give Olette a tour!" in barely legible writing. The man visibly stiffened and his mouth opened and closed like a fish. He stuck the key into the lock after depositing a couple bags onto the floor. He swallowed thickly and opened the door.

"Welcome to my room. You can sit on Demyx's bed if you want."

Roxas put the bags he'd been holding onto the floor beside the empty case of energy drinks and sat on the bed. His jacket slipped off his shoulders to form a force field around where his butt met the comforter. Axel's face fell. _I guess I chose the right bed. _Despite the 'I better run' vibes coming off of the man in waves he stepped inside letting the door slide shut behind him with a click.

"What now?"

"I don't know. What do you wanna do Roxas?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. _Is this gonna go on for the entire time I'm here? It took me long enough to get him to let me come here…_

**Axel stared at him and ran a hand through his hair in that annoying way. He sighed then took a sip of his apple juice. **_**Who drinks juice at a coffee shop anyway?!**_** For a couple of minutes neither of them said anything and took to looking out the window or at the other customers. The owner-a bespectacled man with brown hair and a small amount of facial hair-stood behind the counter talking to two kids about Roxas' age about cell phones. **_**That kid's hair is as orange as Axel's is red…weirdo…**_** The blonde prodded at the muffin he'd bought with his finger wondering what kind of nuts were in it since he hadn't really looked at the sign while ordering. **

"**Okay, fine. You can come to my dorm. But you're bringing Olette."**

"**You didn't make me bring her this time."**

"**This is a public place. Besides, Demyx wasn't available."**

_**Don't sound so excited, you might break something…**_** The teen rolled his eyes, "whatever. Meet me after school then."**

"**Yeah, okay. I guess we better get going to your house."**

"**Sure."**

_That was painful. Even before then I had to call him three times before I convinced him fully. _The red head leaned forward, a few strands of hair falling into his face. Even if he didn't want to admit it, Axel did look pretty conflicted about the whole thing. _Maybe…I __**should**__ just give up…What if this is just an excuse and he's trying to say he doesn't like me…_ His heart felt like it was pumping more slowly, like it was harder to breathe almost. But Axel was still wearing the scarf. That had to count for something, right? _I should've talked to Olette more about this…What if…_

"Cheer up emo kid. I know I'm boring but that's no reason to pout, got it memorized?"

"Tell me something."

"I put hot sauce on everything…?"

"Stupid. I mean… …Do…If you don't like me just tell me!" _Just say you don't so I can get over this already. …Or say you do and stop being such an asshole about this._

"I do like you. Stupid," the skin under the teardrops went red.

"L…Liar!" he got to his feet and balled his hands into fists. _Then why don't you prove it? _

He didn't expect the man's eyebrows to lower in a harsh arc, a frown flashing across his face. "I'm not a liar Roxas."

_Is he actually mad?_ Axel stood up, "I know what you're trying to pull Roxas. I'm not an idiot."

They met in the middle of the room with Roxas grabbing a hold of his own scarf and glaring upwards, "You act like it though."

"Shut up."

He almost punched Axel in the face except that he couldn't reach. So he kicked him instead. Right in the shin. Of course the red head went down to his knee hissing in pain then punched the blonde hard enough in the thigh that he got knocked off balance. They glared at each other from their places on the floor. _Asshole. Why would you hit me!?_ He snorted and looked towards the window.

"You know you're really spoiled Roxas."

He tried to think of a retort but nothing came to mind. What could someone say when they were called spoiled? _It's a yes or no thing…and even if I say I'm not I'll just end up looking stupid…_ The teen just stayed silent-short of saying that Axel was the spoiled one he had nothing to say. So they lapsed into silence that made him want to just go home and forget the whole thing. _But Olette is still out with Demyx. I can't just leave her…_

"Are you trying to make me hate you?"

"…Why would I do that?"

"You are a freak."

Axel nodded, "yeah."

…_Why so serious? He's giving me that look again._

"Sorry I hit you."

"Me too."

Roxas sighed, "idiot."

"Speak for yourself. Roxas…it's not that I don't like you, got it memorized? Back in high school I used to be a pretty bad kid. I burnt a lot of shit down because I wanted attention," the man laughed, "this is getting a bit like a soap opera."

"I think my mom said something about it…I heard her talking about this serial arsonist going around…I was scared our house would get burned down too. But I didn't cry about it like Sora did."

"Sure. You would've been a kid then right? I got off easy since I was a minor and my dad is pretty rich. But my parents never really forgave me for it-we had to move and everything so they were pissed. So I can't afford to get into trouble again Roxas."

_I was only six…I __**should**__ just forget about this. He's not changing his mind. _He didn't bother looking at Axel for fear that he'd start crying like an idiot so he kept his eyes focused on the man's shoes. Which looked like cheap rip-offs of Chucks and of course red. He nodded.

"Okay…Once Olette comes back I'll go home."

"So you're giving up."

"You want me to! I should just do what _you_ want right?!"

"I guess so."

"Fine. It's goodbye then."

"When Olette and Demyx get here."

"I'll wait outside."

"Okay."

He made sure to slam the door behind him but couldn't be bothered to yell obscenities as he left. _All I want is to call Olette and go home. And forget about that idiot. _He wouldn't cry about this, not until he got home anyway or at least until he and Olette got on the bus. Considering the fact that he was a high school kid sitting in front of a college student's dorm room he wasn't surprised when a couple of people spared him a glance but occupied himself with texting Olette over and over until she finally picked up her phone. He didn't say much other than "I'm going home" but she still ended up saying she understood and showed up 10 minutes later with Demyx.

"…What're you doing outside Roxas? Axel did something stupid didn't he!?"

"No, it was me. Tell him I'll talk to my mom about the tutoring thing."

The music student cocked his head to one side, "…O…okay! Are you guys leaving already? But me and Olette were having so much fun! That stupid Axel!"

"Sorry Demyx. I'll call you and we can go out sometime!" the brunette girl smiled before turning to Roxas. 'Are you okay?' she mouthed soundlessly.

He shrugged and got to his feet, "see you later Demyx."

"Okay. Get home safely!"

"We will!" she looped her arm around his and they started on their way out of the campus. It was still cold, colder than it had been in fact and he didn't find himself too willing to stand outside waiting for the subway then the bus. _And Olette's gotta ask sometime…_ Only she didn't the entire way home and he didn't feel compelled to talk about it either. _I guess this stupid drama… is over. _

_

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_

I shit you not I did not intend for this to happen. Somehow, SOMEHOW they did this. I never try and force the characters into doing what I want, I essentially let them write the story. UNFORTUNATELY these shitheads are stupid and are not doing anything remotely CLOSE to what I wanted. How do you guys go from holding hands to now saying "okay bai."?! I don't understand. This now enters into the "Roxas and Axel further try to convince themselves they hate each other by dating other people unsuccessfully phase". :/ I didn't want this phase to exist. I really didn't. I literally write things as they come. I rarely go back and revise though for this chapter I did. I think that's the problem ha ha. Orange haired guy is Neku from WEWY and Joshua is the other guy with Mr.H being the one talking to them about cellphones! ;D


	10. Chapter 10

Urk. Emoness ahead my friends. Emoness ahead. D: DOUBLE DIGITS!!!! Thanks for continuing to read everyone ^^

Maxmad(sorry I spelt you name wrong last time _). Lol I think it's impossible to dislike Demyx. I think she could have a small crush on him but I think she also likes Pence a lot(they have off screen time together :'D They take the train together every morning and hang out after school). I've been considering doing a one shot in this universe with them as a pairing but it won't be happening in this fic XD I don't feel that keyblades are really necessary. It's a story about KH characters so it already has a theme of KH. I also named the one band after a keyblade as a nod to the game. A lot of the times I've got a general idea of what I'm gonna do in a chapter once I get about a quarter in(well, not ALL the time as evidenced by ch.9 XD). And I think of a lot of the same things you do a lot of the times. :'D Great minds! But thanks for the suggestions :)

Chapter 10

Axel slid into the House of the Dead machine and picked up a plastic gun. It felt flimsy in his hand but other than the layer of other people's sweat not entirely unpleasant. He didn't say hello to Zexion or even look over at the gamer while signing into the machine with a loud gunshot sound. _This is probably gonna kill my eyes . _

"You suck at this game."

"Thanks for affirming that for me," the red head fired in random directions hoping to hit something while Zexion saved his ass from the multitude of zombies that got too close.

"What happened with that kid?"

"None of your business. Shut up and play."

_Not that I want to play. _They died just before what he assumed was the end because the other guy let out an irritated sigh. Zexion didn't vacate the machine even when the title screen came back up but didn't put in another quarter either. He turned to Axel, his visible eyebrow raising.

"What are you here for?"

"I wanted to know if you wanna go out somewhere."

"…In what context? If this is a joke Axel…"

"Looks like someone wants me pretty bad. It's not a joke _Zexy_-why look for a kid to do an adult's job, right?" he smirked at the expression on the silver haired student's face. Even in the dark reading the man proved no great feat seeing as Zexion showed most things through his subtle variations on the standard 'I couldn't give a shit about you' look.

"I…Suppose…However I will have to get the time so I can take the day off of work."

"How about this Thursday? I'll even come pick you up from your student housing, got it memorized?" he brushed the bangs out of Zexion's face. _I could get used to this…At least here I'm in control. Unlike with …Roxas…_ His grin faltered for a second but of course it was spotted-not that the other said anything about it being rather busy with pretending to be annoyed with the contact.

"Fine. Stop touching me…"

"You know you like it Zexy."

~~**~~

His alarm buzzed just loud enough to invade his dreams for a few minutes before he realized the noise was actually happening in real time. He sat up in bed without bothering to open his eyes while slamming his hand down on his alarm. With a shiver his eyelids raised slightly and he swung his legs around until they reached the rug beside his bed. _I can't believe I'm getting up this early…Olette will probably say "it's better than being late!" or something. _The entire rest of the house was quiet so he figured he'd probably be making his own lunch this morning. _Dad isn't even up yet. Doesn't he usually go to work around this time?_

He descended the stairs unconsciously to the rhythm of the freezing rain pelting the windows then flicked on the lights in the kitchen. Last night's dishes still sat in the sink-_because Sora was too busy whining about Riku to do the dishes. _He rolled his eyes but left them. After all, it wasn't his job to the dishes. And anyway his stomach was making rumbling noises even if he told himself he wasn't all that hungry. So to appease it he made some instant oatmeal, gulping it down without really tasting it. But at least the meal warmed him up a bit.

After doing his hair, getting dressed and pulling on his shoes Roxas swung his bag onto his shoulder. Then he spotted the note on the hallway wall. 'Roxas, you should take an umbrella because it's calling for rain, mom'. _So? I'll just use Olette's…I might not fit though._ He sighed and grabbed one from the vase holding the umbrellas before leaving the house, closing the door quietly behind him.

The others stood in front of the station-Hayner under a camo umbrella, Pence and Olette sharing her orange one. _It's really coming down…mom wasn't kidding._ As he approached the brunette girl's hand went to her mouth.

"Hey Roxas, I thought you said that ugly thing wasn't yours!" Hayner yelled.

…_I took Axel's umbrella. Why is it still at our house?! …why…did I have to take this one? _His jaw clenched.

"Oh…Roxas…You guys go on ahead. We'll catch up!" she smiled brightly then turned to him, eyebrows furrowed, "I SAID GO!"

_Why didn't I get him to take it the last time he was at my house? Why didn't mom give it back? Why is it still here? _ Hayner said something he didn't catch the Pence and they went on their way shrugging at each other like 'what're ya gonna do?'. Her hand wrapped around his preventing him from letting the offending rain repeller from plummet to the stone.

"Are you okay?"

He shook his head silently. _Why did this have to be here to remind me of him? _

"Here, give it to me. I'll trade you okay?"

"It…It's so ugly. Why did he ch-choose such an ugly umbrella?!" he could feel his breath hitching in a way that meant tears were coming. Not that they hadn't already come many times previously. He'd gone right home and locked himself in his room much like in an old school romance movie though no one had come upstairs to have a heart to heart about love. Of course Olette had come over the next day with cookies which remained on his desk half eaten. She'd tried to convince him to delete Axel's number from his cell phone too but it still lived in his 'contacts' list. _I wonder if Axel's already deleted mine…Probably. He's the kind of guy who gets over this stuff quickly I bet. _

~~**~~

His finger hovered over the OK button. He sighed and let his phone fall onto his bed. _Shit…get over it. He broke up with you. This was what you wanted anyway. Now you don't have to get in trouble for wanting to…with a kid…_He could've called Roxas. He could've just pressed the speed dial button and said 'hey, I was wrong' but he didn't. Since Roxas probably hated him and didn't want to see him anyway.

"At least sound excited about going out with Zexy!"

"And why should I do that? It's called playing hard to get, got it memorized?" he tapped his head.

"But you're _not_."

_**You're**__ the one telling me this? Mr. I started going out with a guy I didn't even know because he said my hair was totally rad? _He smirked, "yeah, well, Zexy doesn't know that now does he?"

"What about Roxy?"

"Shut up about him Demyx. Or I'll tell Xigbar what you got him for Christmas."

"NO! It's a SURPRISE! Axel you can't!"

He sighed and waved his hand in a dismissive motion, "then don't talk about him and then I won't have to, got it memorized?"

_That should shut him up for now at least…_Demyx pouted but shut up-if playing his sitar counted. _Better than listening to him talk. _Axel sighed, something that had become common lately, and lay back on his bed. Just a week ago Roxas had been in here. And he'd been thinking less than honourable thoughts about the kid. _Not that I hadn't been before then. Shit. Shouldn't have let him go._ _Should be getting dressed before going out._ Though Zexion had such a hard on for him that he probably could've worn a paper bag with a face painted on it and the guy would've thought Axel was the sexiest thing on earth. _Desperate bastard._ In the end he settled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. His roommate eyed him from his bed.

"If you don't wanna then you shouldn't go. Call Roxy!"

"I thought I told you to shut up Demyx."

"…Well… …make sure to dress warm. Take a scarf or somethin'!"

He rolled his eyes, "yeah mother."

Of course he grabbed the closest one to him. And of course it just happened to be Roxas'. His hand jumped back like he'd touched a hot pan making Demyx stare at him. The blonde smiled but said nothing. Axel almost left it until the other man made a noise in his throat-_Like he's trying to convince me to call him by using the scarf as a mental weapon. _He wrapped it around his neck in a defiant motion and went out the door.

~**~

Despite his outburst earlier the blonde teen had managed to brush it off as 'issues at home' with Pence and Hayner. And they'd believed him without questioning it. _I feel bad but…I can't tell them yet. What if they won't be…no…that's stupid. Hayner wouldn't do that…right? _Either way he kept his mouth shut for the moment and contented himself with listening to his friends talk about video games, clothes and TV shows. He wondered idly what shows Axel watched, if any, since he'd never really asked. _I was too preoccupied with liking him I guess…But why did I even like him if I barely knew him? _Thinking about it made his head hurt so he filed those thoughts under 'deal with later' then went back to saying nothing.

Olette stuck close to him the entire day much to his displeasure. Mostly because Pence was starting to give him a look that resembled someone being shot every time she went over to Roxas. _Maybe he thinks I'm stealing his girlfriend. _So he pushed her away saying he wanted some time to his self to think things over. The blonde went out to the back field with Axel's stupid umbrella and stared at the water trickling like little rivers across the walkway-he didn't even try venturing out to the grass. It'd probably be all mud by now anyway. He had a decision, as always. Tell his best friends(excluding Olette) about being gay or let them live in ignorance for the rest of their friendship. And bear the annoyance that would come when Hayner tried to set him up with girls.

"Hi Roxas."

"Oh. Hey."

_What's Namine doing out here?_ He didn't look up at her. But he could see her from his peripheral vision, hovering just a few feet away under her own umbrella.

"You look kinda upset."

"Yeah."

"You wanna talk about it?"

He shook his head, "no, not really."

"I'm really sorry Roxas. Because of what happened. We're not really related by blood or anything…But I pushed my feelings on you. The truth is, I was really scared. I'd never been here before, and my dad is sick and I just wanted someone to be with me. I didn't even think of what you wanted. So I'm sorry."

_Why is she telling me this? _He shrugged, "it's fine."

"I was just wondering…if we could be friends?"

"I…guess so…"

_You already hang around us anyway. So what's the difference? _But he felt better. That she no longer wanted them to be together and could deal with them just being friends. _Some of the pressure is gone. _Finally he turned to face her and let himself smile just a bit, "has mom invited you over yet? She'll probably want to see you."

"Mm. I think she said…next week?"

He nodded. _Mom probably picked Thursday or Monday because she's used to having someone eating dinner with us on those days…_ Of course the first thing she'd asked on the Monday after the disastrous trip to DIC was 'when is Axel coming?' and he'd had to lie and say that the guy couldn't tutor him anymore because of school work. Roxas shoved one hand in his pocket and pulled his cellphone out of pocket. Instead of Axel he entered Demyx's number. How is your arm?

He didn't get an answer right away like normal though so he put it away.

~**~

"Xiggy, Xiggy wait, my phone was ringing!"

"Harsh, your phone's more important?"

The blonde stuck out his bottom lip, "…right now…be right back!"

"…Dude. Why do I put up with you?"

Demyx did a half roll out of the bed and grabbed his phone out of his pants pocket. _Roxy? _It's fine! U forgot ur scarf here btw! He waited for a minute. Oh. _ Uh oh! What if he's crying?! Stupid Demyx stupid!_ Y don't u call Ax? He's moping! _He'll kill me if he finds out! _I doubt that… _Aw, he's really upset! I wish I could hug him! _

"Gyah! Xiggy I'm texting!"

"Yeah, well, I'm totally not down for that dude. Cocktease."

"I'm not a cocktease you're just addicted to smexy time!"

"Babe, how long you gonna call it 'smexy time'?" Xigbar put a hand to his forehead.

"As long as I want! Aw, are you grumpy 'cause I ditched you for my phone?" he climbed back onto the bed, laying himself across his boyfriend's chest.

"You need an answer to that question?"

"Ee don't rape me Xiggy!"

The door opened for a couple seconds then closed. _Bye Axel! _

"Owww be careful of my arm Xiggy!"

~**~

Demyx hadn't replied so he figured that the music student had been in the middle of doing something. Regardless the answer to that question wasn't important-it was the previous ones that had his stomach turning. _I left my scarf there. That means…I'll have to go back there…He can't have it! It's my favourite. But…if I see him…_He closed the umbrella and went back inside. _I don't know what'll happen. _

_

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Ewww AkuZexion DDDDD: Why him? Zexion has a hard on for Axel simple as that. lol. Ha ha during the scene with the umbrella I was pretty much thinking of the part in the Lovely Complex anime even though they're not alike at all. "B-Bear curry. Be-bear curry! …bear curry…" o.O "eh…Koizumi what about bear curry?!" TAT"be…bear curry! Bear….bear…curry…" :'D Short chapter is short but yeh know…lots of school work atm :'D Also working on request/challenge fic is taking up much of my time…


	11. Chapter 11

This will likely be the second last chapter guys. I'm getting kind of annoyed with this fic(lol I can only imagine what the people who have stuck around feel!) and I move from fandom to fandom rather quickly and don't like to be tied down to one if I'm not playing or watching the series/game ^^; But I wanted to finish this anyway because I have a tendency to abandon stories ha ha. So thanks to the people who suffered through the chapters upon chapters of no getting it on :'D I promise you some action soon!

Chapter 11

_Where's dad? He hasn't been around…_ He roamed the house aimlessly, not really looking for anything but noticing that his dad was noticeably absent. _…What if he's having an affair?_ Not that he'd really thought of it before-being the product of an adulterous relationship. And he hadn't thought about what it meant to Sora who never saw his real mom almost ever. But what he did know was that he needed to talk to Sora. Because he knew that the Disney couple had broken up. Seeing as all Sora had been doing for the past couple days was walk around in a daze, occasionally shedding a few tears. _I guess we both have bad luck lately…_ His brother sat on the couch staring at the TV without watching it. He could tell only because the news was on and Sora never watched the News.

Roxas sat next to him, "so what happened?"

"He…found out I felt bad for him. He said…" and then he burst into tears. _Uh oh…He'll probably want to watch chick flicks tonight…_ "I-I-If you don't e-e-e-even like me why bother?"

"He…Uh, well, maybe it's for the best."

"But I re-really d-d-do like him!" one of his sibling's hands grabbed onto the blonde's shirt, "AM I GAY ROX?!"

"Uh…no? Probably not…? I mean…you've only ever liked Riku, right? You said yourself that you can appreciate hot people regardless of sex…"

"Y-Yeah. I-I j-just don't want him to h-h-hate me!"

_I doubt that would happen…_The fair haired boy patted him on the back, "Why didn't you tell him? He's your best friend, right? I don't think he'd hate you. Besides…you do stupid things trying to be nice all the time."

"B-B-But R-Roxas! I could t-tell he-"

"Don't. If Riku hates you then I'll start listening to your stupid music. Just let him calm down and he'll come around."

"You're such a good brother!" the brunette pushed him into the couch arm with a hug. He didn't even try to get away for the moment. He could use a hug even if he didn't want to admit it to himself. _I can't believe they broke up. I mean…they looked like they liked each other so much…Why wouldn't they be together…_Roxas stared blankly at the wall. In his despair Sora didn't notice how incredibly unresponsive his brother was being luckily for the blonde. _Why does it make so much sense when I'm thinking of other people?_

~~**~~

"Axel~! I got news from Roxy!"

The red head lay on his bed with his eyes closed and only grunted in response.

"He says that Sora and Riku broke up! Oh no!"

"What?"

_Those two? How the hell did that happen? That's like Demyx and Xigbar breaking up. It's just not natural._ He turned his head towards Demyx, trying to grasp how the disgustingly lovey dovey couple had come to the conclusion that they should break up. _They were so gross together but…they liked each other a lot so what's the… …_

"Shit."

"Huh? Why're you swearin' Axy?" the musician put a hand to his mouth as he glanced at his cellphone, "Xiggy you're such a perv!"

"You know how my date went Dem? Shit. Zexion is so…fuck."

"…You didn't DO IT did you?!"

Axel rolled his eyes, "yes Demyx. I just went and had sex with Zexion."

It made him shudder just to think of it. _Obviously he wanted to. But…Shit…_

**Zexion pushed him down onto his bed, hair falling down far enough that it tickled Axel's nose. The steel haired man pressed his lips to the other's so quickly their teeth clacked together but they both ignored it for the time being. The gamer's breath smelled like thousand island salad dressing with a hint of beer-in other words, awful. **_**At least Roxas had clean teeth…**_**Still in full winter gear Axel found himself too hot and went to pull off his coat at least but was prevented from even moving. **

"**Zexion, shit, lemme take off my coat."**

"**Sorry."**

**If desperation could be attributed to a scent he would forever relate it to the graphic design student's breath right at this moment. Nevermind that Roxas had been trying to get in his pants for weeks but he hadn't gotten laid since he'd met the kid. **_**I should want this. So why don't I? **_**His hand rested on his-no, Roxas'-scarf and he sat up. **

"**I'm gonna go, got it memorized?"**

"**What? Why?!" Zexion's mouth turned down into a deeper frown. He wrapped a hand around one of Axel's wrists, "is this because of that kid?"**

"**Honestly? Yeah. I'll see you around."**

**He closed the door resolutely behind him with an audible click. **_**Dammit…Why does it have to be like this?**_

"You couldn't do it because of Roxy, right?"

"Yeah…He's making me into such a girl, Dem."

"Wh-don't be upset Axy! It's not girly to feel strong emotions for someone you like!" Demyx nodded, a knowing look on his face.

"But he's only a kid."

"If you like someone you should chase them! It's okay that he's younger than you, it's fine. As long as you like him."

_I know you told me about Sora so this would happen Roxas._ He put a hand to his forehead. _Even though you said that you don't care about us anymore. _Though Roxas had never said that-he'd just said he was giving up. There was only one thing that he could do in this situation. _I've gotta call him._

~~**~~

Axel had called at 10pm and told him, among other things, that they had to talk. Not that Roxas could leave the house now since his mom had looked more than a little angry at the entire world today. His foot tapped against the floor as he tried to write an essay as a measure of his impatience. The entire situation was making his stomach leap unpleasantly with every ring of the home phone or knock at the door. Of course he wouldn't come to the house this late but for whatever reason Roxas still kind of hoped. _What does he even want to talk about? If it's about us…What'll I say? _He'd called Olette and she told him to follow his heart. Whatever that meant. _But what if I don't know what to do? _Now he could see why Axel got sick when he got too nervous.

The blonde finished the last of his essay then lay in bed for the rest of the night running through possible conversations in his head. Half of them ended in him saying 'screw off' and the others 'I like you a lot'. No matter how much he wondered nothing satisfied him and he couldn't force his eyes to close. He just couldn't figure out what he'd say or what Axel would say. Morning came soon enough though and he had to drag himself downstairs to eat breakfast. Where his mom sat drinking at cup of coffee, her lips pursed and eyes narrowed to little slits.

"M-Mom? What's wrong…?"

"Oh I'll tell you Roxas. I'll tell you! I'm sure you already know why Sora is only your half brother. Well I guess I'm not the only 'other woman' your father has."

…_I knew it. _He stared at his feet, unsure what to say on the matter. _Does that mean we'll have to move away from everyone? I don't wanna live with some other family! Why does dad have to be such a…_

"Men are pigs Roxas. So be careful or you might find yourself on your own."

_Why are you saying this to me?! …She can't know about Axel…She would kill me if she knew…_

"I…don't get it."

"Oh god Roxas, I'm your _mother_ of _course_ I know about you. And I know about Sora and Riku too. They broke up didn't they? I don't know who you're after but I have an idea. Mothers always know these kind of things. Here, have a cup of coffee or you'll be dead all day."

She poured him a cup despite her always telling him that the stuff was bad for his height. _…I'm already short enough as it is…If I don't grow Axel…_ But he drank it anyway. _How did she know though? I didn't tell her…And Olette probably didn't. And I wasn't being stupid about how I liked Axel…Was I?_

Either way he drank his coffee, ate his toast and was out the door. Only he didn't go to school. Axel had said to come over any time and he was taking that literally. _I don't care if it's 5:20am. _He got on the bus and moved to the back.

"Yeah Olette, I'm getting on now. I probably won't be in homeroom so just say I'm sick…See you at lunch. Bye."

The caffeinated beverage did nothing for his energy level. Neither did the slow emo song being pumped through his headphones. _Maybe I'll just…_Why did this feel vaguely familiar? His head rested against the window letting it vibrate slightly with the movement of the bus and motor. _Tired…_ but he felt someone sit down next to him. He didn't have to open his eyes to know it was Axel. And he didn't bother acknowledging the man's presence either. His head now rested on the college student's shoulder. Maybe he drooled a bit on the red head's jacket but it didn't matter.

"I know you're awake."

"Shut up."

"Is that any way to treat me Roxy? I'm hurt."

"I think you'll survive."

"Yeah, I'm sure I will. How've you been?"

He sighed, "fine…"

"Hm. You know, this isn't a TV show. I'd rather not have this conversation on the bus, got it memorized?"

Roxas nodded-_Yeah. Everyone's looking at us like we're the next big soap opera or something…_ so they disembarked the motor coach at the next stop and walked in no particular direction. _I shouldn't have worn my uniform…Now everyone'll know I'm skipping. Don't police arrest you for that?_ The two walked close enough for their hands to brush but he refused to go to Axel. _If he's really gonna say the age difference doesn't matter…he can come to me. _It was cold enough that he wished he had his scarf-which he realized was still over at the red head's at that very moment. _It's almost like… …no, I'm not saying it. There's no such thing as fate!_ Almost no one else walked beside them, not that he blamed them. Again Axel had demonstrated his poor clothing choices by only wearing a hoodie which didn't appear to have the ability to zip up. Not that Roxas could talk too much-in his half asleep state he'd completely forgotten his own jacket. But at least he had a long sleeved shirt and a vest for his winter uniform.

Neither of them spoke. Words that could've been spoken died on his lips even if he wanted to say them he couldn't force them to live past his thoughts. The blonde sighed. If Axel wasn't going to talk then what was the point in them meeting? He looked up-was the distance getting smaller?-Axel's eyes lingered on him for a second before flicking away to look at something else. _Yeah, because everything around here is __**so**__ interesting._ But his face was paler than usual; his lips crushed together in a thin line-he looked scared. Or as scared as a guy would allow himself to look he supposed. _I guess I'm kind of exempt from that…seeing as all I've done is cry in front of everyone like a baby._

"What're those tattoos for?"

He shrugged, "to look cool? No…it was the first thing I did when I turned 18. Because my parents said they'd disown me if I ever got a tattoo on my face."

"Did they?"

"Ha…No. They're dead so…"

"Oh…"

"Don't go there. I'm over it. Anyway, all they did was tell me what I couldn't do. So…I could care less now, got it memorized?" Axel didn't make eye contact while he said it though. _Liar. Who says that about their parents and means it?_

"Anyway, I wanted to tell you….I'm sorry about the drama I caused. I'm sorry I fucked up your life because I can't make up my mind about things."

"I don't think you fucked up my _entire _life Axel. I just want the truth."

"Yeah. The truth is I was… scared got it memorized? And I know you told me about Riku and Sora to make a point," the college student murmured.

"It made me think too. So…"

"Yeah. Listen Roxas…I can't promise everything will go smoothly. And…I probably won't live up to your expectations but…if you still want to…"

He let his mouth do the talking-but not by speaking. They'd done too much of that already. Too much trying to force themselves into one type of relationship and failing. Too much stumbling over words when they could've communicated in other ways. And way too much ignoring what they really wanted to tell the other. Axel's lips were chapped, not soft like all of the stupid romance novels described, he didn't whisper sweet nothings in his ear and they certainly didn't look graceful. Elbows collided, they knocked teeth and Axel had to hunch over like Quasimodo but he still felt relief. The chase was great but feeling his mouth connected to the red head's was even better. His hand wrapped around the man's forearm, holding him where he was. Because there was no way he was letting Axel get away now.

They pulled away then stared at each other.

"You want to come over? Demyx is out."

"I should go to school. But I'll come over after…okay?"

The man smirked, "sure. You remember how to get to my room?"

"I got it memorized," Roxas smiled, then kissed him again before letting go of his arm.

"I've got some things to do around here but I'll wait with you for the bu-Oh. Here comes one now."

"I'll see you later," the teen felt his face burning. But luckily he was able to hop on the bus before Axel had a chance to laugh at him. His mouth refused to move out of a smile the rest of the way to school and to his 10:30am class, even when he nearly fell down the stairs on the way to his locker. Everything felt…lighter. Not that he didn't know why of course. Now all he had to was get through the day. _And call mom to tell her I'll be late. …I still can't believe she knows…Whatever…As long as she's not annoying about it._ With that he sat down at his desk and focused on the chalkboard-all he had to do was finish the day. How hard could it be?

End Chapter

LOL disembarked the motor coach. I stole that line from Little Britian XD "I was disembarking the motor coach when I took a tumble, ho ho ho" "So you fell off the bus" "Ye~es." :'D

YES YES YES YEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. FINALLY. FINALLY. FINALLY! I'm happy I finally got them to actually kiss!(again). Next chapter will be the last for sure I think. But we'll see. J


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